HawkStrong: Michigan Reconnect gave Israel Perez a path to web development career

The Michigan Reconnect program was tailor made for students like Israel Perez.

“When I caught wind of Michigan Reconnect, it felt right for me,” said Perez, of Detroit.

Michigan Reconnect is a program for Michigan citizens over the age of 25 who do not have a college degree. It covers tuition and some fees for all students at the in-district rate. Out-of-district students pay the difference between in-district and out-of-district tuition and fees – and Michigan Reconnect will provide a substantial discount. Financial aid is also available to assist with out-of-district costs.

“I realized it was time to go back to school,” said Perez. “I felt I owed it to myself.”

High school diploma didn't offer enough opportunities

The eldest of five, Perez graduated from Western International High School in Detroit in 1999. After graduation, he went to work.

“I had to step into the role of provider to support my family,” he said.

For more than 20 years, Perez worked in food and retail. He served as a manager of a Starbucks for nearly three of the nine years he lived in St. Petersburg, FL before returning to his native Michigan.

“I did all the working world stuff and didn’t get to where I wanted to be,” he recalled. “The highest I got was a manager at Starbucks. After I stepped down, I was really trying to get back into school, realizing education would be the key for me. The question was: How do I get there?”

Perez learned about Michigan Reconnect and enrolled at HFC at the height of the pandemic in 2020.

“Based on the choices I was given with Michigan Reconnect, I found it advantageous to come to HFC. This felt more like providence for me.”

Very empathetic to the world

Perez will earn his associate degree in web development and his web development certificate from HFC at the end of 2023. He plans to transfer to Eastern Michigan University to pursue a bachelor's degree. Perez also took American Sign Language classes at the College.

“I’m very empathetic to the world. I wanted a glimpse into the workings of the language. I knew the basics of sign language: ABCs and counting. I wanted to expand on it,” said Perez. “Approximately 4% of the world is deaf. It blew my mind – people having to learn a language they cannot even hear. It’s very eye-opening. Coming from those classes, you learn about accessibility. No matter what a user’s ability is, you want to make it accessible for them.”

Reaching his goal of earning a full scholarship

Perez applied for and was rewarded with the Apple Scholarship for the HFC Mobile Development Certificate Program. This scholarship covers full tuition, books, and fees.

“It’s always been my goal to get a full scholarship! It came out of the blue,” said Perez. “My summer off turned into a full course load. Why wait?”

His career goal is developing reading apps for children. This was sparked when Perez took the Software Engineering class and was part of the a team of five students who developed a mobile app. This app was a life-coaching app where you’re able to keep track of food intake, activities, wellness, and appointments.

“If I develop content for the web, I might as well develop apps,” said Perez. “I would love to develop reading apps for children that harken back to the days of role-playing games where you gain all these karma points just for reading. If children are playing Fortnite, they might well as get some reading in instead of just blindly playing a video game.”

A “Swift” learner

HFC web architect Micah Webner served as a tutor in the particular class taught by Robert James.

“Israel was one of the team leaders for the Winter 2023 semester’s Software Engineering class,” said Webner. “Israel's team developed an iPhone application as part of the overall project. This was a harder than normal challenge because none of that team's members had previous experience with the Swift programming language. Every time I worked with Israel, he always had a positive attitude and worked hard to keep his team engaged and moving forward, despite the sometimes-challenging learning curve. It was a pleasure working with Israel.”

HFC Student Success Navigator Ashlei Chears is impressed by Perez’s drive.

"From the beginning, Israel has always been hard-working and personable,” said Chears. “I’m so happy that I got to tag along as his advisor. I know that he has many great ideas of what he wants to do with the skills he has learned at HFC, and I couldn’t be more excited to see him make it happen."