WYE MILLS – Yanying “Stella” Wei, 24, of Cambridge began her journey at Chesapeake College as a noncredit student in the English as a Second Language (ESL) program. This year, she graduated with a degree in business administration and a 4.0 grade point average.

A native of JiLin Province in northern China, Ms. Wei immigrated to the United States in 2019. As a technology education student, Miss Wei took college courses in China. She began English instruction in China at age 12, but found that she needed more language preparation to tackle college courses in the United States. She enrolled in Chesapeake’s ESL and Adult Basic Education classes where she found both language instruction and encouragement.

“The ESL/ABE classes and instructors helped me so much. I could practice, learn proper pronunciation and ask many questions,” Miss Wei said.

Once on a firm academic foundation, Miss Wei was ready to take general education and business classes in a degree program. She said she continued to find support through her instructors, the TRiO Program and the Academic Support Center.

Miss Wei juggled her full-time restaurant job and volunteer work with a full course load while achieving academic excellence.

In nominating her for Chesapeake’s top award, TRiO Academic Coordinator Terry Perkins-Black said, “Stella is a role model and leader in her community and the classroom, making her an ideal candidate for the John T. Harrison Award.”

A Dean’s List student and graduate with highest honors, Miss Wei was also inducted into Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society.

Assistant Professor of Business and Economics Catherine Rust added, “Stella’s strong work ethic and devotion to excellence will lead her down a path of continued accomplishments. She raises the bar for quality of contributions in online discussions. Her writing style and grasp of economic concepts are quite impressive despite the language barrier.”

Miss Wei said she enjoyed all of her classes at Chesapeake, especially her business courses, and even those that were especially challenging for her.  In Amber McGinnis’ Communication’s class, Miss Wei overcame her shyness to master new skills, and expanded knowledge of her second language in Linda Earls’ English class.

“When I moved here, many people told me that Chesapeake College would be a good place for me. It has been good for me in many ways,” Miss Wei said. “I’ve learned in all of my classes, made friends and gained confidence in myself. I’m thankful and feel ready for the next step.”

Miss Wei will transfer to the University of Maryland – College Park’s Robert H. Smith School of Business in the fall where she plans to study finance with an eventual goal of working in the banking industry.