Our Stories

Ray Pietryla was one of the college’s first physical education instructors at Moraine Valley in 1968, but his classroom wasn’t always a place with four walls and a door. Read More

Janice Stoettner was the oldest girl out of eight children in their modest Evergreen Park home. Read More

As Moraine Valley Community College celebrates its 50th Anniversary, employees, like retired biology professor Lenette Staudinger, share some of their favorite memories and thoughts about what has made the college "rock solid" since 1967. Read More

As Moraine Valley Community College celebrates its 50th Anniversary, former Board of Trustees Chairman Dr. John Donahue shares some of his favorite memories and thoughts about what has made the college "rock solid" since 1967. Read More

As Moraine Valley Community College celebrates its 50th Anniversary, employees, like longtime Counselor Dr. Linda Brandt, share some of their favorite memories and thoughts about what has made the college "rock solid" since 1967. Read More

As Moraine Valley Community College celebrates its 50th Anniversary, employees, like retired Director of Buildings and Grounds Ron Kurfirst, share some of their favorite memories and thoughts about what has made the college "rock solid" since 1967. Read More

As Moraine Valley Community College celebrates its 50th Anniversary, employees, like longtime Photographer Glenn Carpenter, share some of their favorite memories and thoughts about what has made the college "rock solid" since 1967. Read More

As Moraine Valley Community College celebrates its 50th Anniversary, employees, like President Dr. Sylvia M. Jenkins, share some of their favorite memories and thoughts about what has made the college "rock solid" since 1967. Read More

When Dr. Wally Fronczek walks around the campus of Moraine Valley Community College, he can't help but feel excited. Read More

As a young girl, if one would have told Vickie Quade that she would write and produce theater, she would’ve laughed. However, she is doing just that—producing and writing theatre— except she’s not the one laughing—her audiences are. Read More

"Hey, are you the guy on the billboard?" Yes, he was. Moraine Valley Community College alumnus Steve Henry was literally the poster child for the college during his second year at the college. Read More

In its early days, Moraine Valley Community College was housed in a warehouse, several miles east of its current location. Back then, the college boasted open-concept classrooms, separated by colorful tapestries. The backs of the rooms were open so anyone could drop in and listen to the lectures. Read More

When Moraine Valley Community College was about to break ground on Building A, Bob Juracka realized the college was on land that was geographically unique. The original plan called for a tennis court to be built where the Nature Study and Observatory stands today. Read More

Pete Frigo's first office was above a local welding shop on Cicero Avenue in Oak Lawn. The dean of Counseling for Moraine Valley from 1968-1999 now can look back and laugh, but the early days were no laughing matter. “We were just trying to get it together before the start of classes in mid-September,” said Frigo, Read More

As Moraine Valley continued to grow, the college needed a leader to take charge. Dr. Patricia Bauhs, who was dean of continuing education in the late 1980s and 1990s, led the way for Moraine Valley's growth in continuing and professional education. She came from Chicago State University to Moraine Valley in 1986. Read More

Lori Potter has always considered herself a nature enthusiast. From a young age, Potter had a passion for all things outdoors. However, like many people entering college, she wasn’t sure what to major in. Her love for nature was just a hobby; nothing she would consider as a career option. Read More

There was a time in Larry Watson's life when he had exactly 38 cents to his name. Today he owns a multimillion-dollar business And, he credits his success to his education at Moraine Valley Community College. Watson, who owns Art's Auto Rebuilders on the south side of Chicago, recalls a time when he needed to make Read More

For over 15 years, Justin Kmitch has filed thousands of stories as a reporter for the suburban Chicago newspaper, the Daily Herald. He's covered everything from breaking news stories to ongoing cases in the courtroom. Kmitch's own story began at Moraine Valley Community College in 1995. Read More

When Juan Salgado was a high school student, he planned to use money he saved working at a grocery store warehouse for a car instead of his college education. His older sister thwarted his plan, and she gave him a piece of her mind. Read More

Students first. That was the philosophy of Dr. Vernon O. Crawley during his 21-year career at Moraine Valley Community College. Crawley served as the college's president from 1993-2014. Read More

Today Moraine Valley Community College is a bustling campus with beautiful buildings, but it’s unrecognizable compared to what it looked like 50 years ago. Just ask Dr. Margaret Lehner, vice president for Institutional Advancement and executive assistant to the President. She drove right by the campus the first tim Read More

Dawn Fredrikson's job title might have changed over the course of her long career at Moraine Valley Community College, but her enthusiasm has not. Fredrikson, senior administrative assistant to the president and Board of Trustees liaison, is just as excited to come to work today as she was on her first day over 40 Read More

In his youth he took things from others, but now Moraine Valley Community College graduate Daniel Geiter is giving back. Geiter, who spent much of his young adult years in and out of correctional facilities in Chicago, opened a nonprofit college, specifically geared toward ex-offenders, but open to anyone. Read More

Dan McLaughlin prides himself on being a good negotiator—a skillset he developed thanks to classes at Moraine Valley Community College. McLaughlin, mayor of Orland Park since 1993, says it was in his psychology class that he started to build on the foundation for critical thinking. Read More

For Moraine Valley Community College alumna Dr. Christy Powers, her passion for education began when she saw her mother, Angeline Lee, teach at the college. "I sat in the back of the room and could see the energy not only from my mom but from the students," said Powers. "I knew she was making a difference in their Read More

From a young age, Cara Killackey was comfortable being on the campus of Moraine Valley Community College. Killackey attended the college for the first time at age 2 when her mom enrolled her in the on-campus Children's Learning Center. She fondly remembers her early days learning and playing. Read More

"Hey, coach!" Instinctively, Bill Finn turns around. A former student greets him. Next time it might be a community member saying hello, or a fellow pick-up basketball player. Read More