Goals are a big part of Hanah Shehaiber’s life. She sets them, scores them, and she’s steadfast about reaching them.
A soccer aficionado, Hanah has spent most of her life on and around the field either as a player, a coach, a ref, or hearing stories about her dad who played professionally for the Republic of Lebanon. A graduate of Moraine Valley and Saint Xavier University, Hannah says that while she is happy teaching high school right now, her heart is on the soccer field.
“I really do enjoy teaching, but it’s not where I see myself in 20 years. My goal is to be a head coach for Division 1 women’s soccer. That is what I really would love to do,” said Hanah, who has received her first national coaching license.
Born in Dubai, Hanah and her family came to the United States when she was 11 years old. Her dad had other thoughts, though, about a career for his daughter once they were in the U.S.
“Even though he played professionally, he wasn’t in favor of me playing or coaching. It was tough. He wanted me to give it all up and stay in school to become a doctor. But, I decided not to give up soccer,” said Hannah, who played in high school and college, coached at Moraine Valley and still plays on a women’s soccer team.
While her passion runs deep about break-aways, headers and slide tackles, she’s equally as excited about education. She says her private-school education in the Middle East was phenomenal, and it was in Dubai that she learned to speak Spanish and English, in addition to her native Arabic language. Here in the U.S., Hanah says she continued to enjoy school, especially her years at Moraine Valley.
“All around, Moraine Valley was a great experience. I have no regrets that I went to Moraine Valley first,” she said. “I saved a lot of money and got my gen eds done. What’s really, really good was that there were smaller classes, and I was able to really communicate with my teachers, which totally helped with my grades.”
