Students sticking together: Maya Hyser’s story

Since she was a child, Maya Hyser always told everyone she would be a nurse. True to her long-held vision, Maya will graduate in December 2025 from the Moraine Valley Nursing Program.

Maya recalled that when she was about 10 years old, her mom enrolled in the Nursing Program at Moraine Valley. “My mom graduated and started working immediately, and then went on to earn her bachelor’s degree. She told me all about her experience at Moraine Valley and how much she loved it,” Maya said. “I saw that she was thriving, and she is so good and so smart at what she does, and that really inspired me.”

Maya’s experience in the Nursing Program has been as positive as her mother’s was, thanks to the support of her instructors and peers. She is one of several nursing students who started the program together and will finish together.

“It was amazing to be with this group of students,” she said. “I was so nervous, and it was overwhelming at first, but to have people that I was so comfortable with made the whole experience feel much more relaxing. I felt like I was a part of something – and that I was going to get through it no matter what – because I had my family with me.”

Maya, who hopes to work in a medical-surgical unit, shared that her fellow students always were there to pick up anyone who was down. “There was a time when a test really got to all of us. It was super hard, and we were feeling kind of defeated. But then, coming out of the exam room after the test and seeing each other’s faces, we all instantly smiled. It felt like everything was fine again because we were in it together,” she said.

She is thankful to have bonded with a group of students and for her time at Moraine Valley. “There’s a strong sense of community at Moraine Valley, and not just in the Nursing Program but the entire school. I am constantly recommending Moraine Valley’s Nursing Program to everyone who is thinking about going into health care.”

Maya’s story is one in a multi-part series about a cohort of Moraine Valley Nursing Program students who navigated college’s challenges and triumphs together.