Feb. 11, 2025
With a busy 2-year-old daughter and a full-time job, Leah Santiago depends on the convenience of the Grand Rapids Community College Lakeshore Campus in Holland to bring her career dreams to life.
“I’ve always been really interested in working in the medical field, so I’m studying to become an ultrasound technician,” said Santiago, 21. “I knew I could save so much money by attending GRCC, but I didn’t want to have to drive from my home in Holland to Grand Rapids to do it. The Lakeshore Campus is the perfect solution.”
The 52,000-square-foot satellite campus opened in 2021 in a former JCPenney store at the Shops at Westshore Mall in Holland. The facility has nine classrooms, four computer labs and five unique labs for biology, chemistry, electronics, automation, welding and machine tooling, housing programs for students working toward an associate degree or a career-focused certificate.
The campus also has spaces for advising and counseling and other student support services and a satellite library, as well as areas for use by community groups.
Santiago graduated from Holland High School in 2022 and started at the Lakeshore Campus a year later after the birth of her daughter, Xylia. Because she’s balancing parenthood and a 40-hour work week at a Holland optician, she’s only able to make time for two courses per semester.
“Sometimes it feels like it’s a lot to manage, but I’m getting there a little bit at a time,” she said.
Santiago finds her professors in the Radiologic Technology program helpful and enjoys her classes. The program prepares graduates for a career in diagnostic medical imaging as a registry-eligible radiographer.
She squeezes in homework whenever — and wherever — she can, sometimes studying in her car on her lunch hour at work. She also gets a lot of help at home from her mom and two siblings
“My family can tell when I need to study and step in to take my daughter so I can get a little peace to get my homework done,” she said. “I’m very lucky that I have so much support from my family.”
While it’s not always easy, Santiago said she’s grateful to attend GRCC and encourages others to push themselves, too.
“I know I want a better life for me and my child … that’s what’s driving me right now,” she said. “I would tell other people thinking about going to college to believe in themselves and they can do it, too.”
This story was reported by Beth McKenna.