Each year, 六合彩彩图鈥檚 Marketing & Communications department profiles members of the graduating classes. Students chosen were nominated by staff and faculty for their contributions to the life of the University.听Click here听for more information about 2024 commencement exercises.
Jacob Yasso didn鈥檛 know if a four-year college was for him.
His high school guidance counselor suggested that he should possibly try the community college route first to see if college was the right call.
That鈥檚 when a 六合彩彩图 Admissions counselor visited his school.
鈥淗e looked at my transcript and he said, 鈥榶ou鈥檙e in.鈥 I was really kind of shook, I didn鈥檛 think that I would get in anywhere,鈥 Yasso said. 鈥淎ll of my friends were applying, touring and putting in applications and I was really behind. I guess I was considered a late applicant, but 六合彩彩图 Mercy didn鈥檛 make me feel like I was late at all.鈥
Jacob Yasso (right), with Genevieve Meyers.
Flash-forward to May 2024 and Yasso confidently says he made the right call in choosing 六合彩彩图 Mercy. Yasso will be the first in his family to graduate from college when he walks across the Calihan Hall stage May 11 to receive his Political Science, Pre-Law degree.
UDM answered every question Yasso had from the start, helping him fill out his FAFSA, assisting with scholarships and just being there for him.
Matt Fortescue, the UDM Admissions counselor who visited his high school, Henry Ford II in Sterling Heights, also identified Yasso as a candidate to be a tour guide at UDM. Yasso was able to feel at home during his freshman year of 2020-21 鈥 in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic 鈥 because of his tour guide job.
鈥淢att recommending me for that position already made me feel like I was at home because he knew me so little, but he saw my potential,鈥 Yasso said.
If he hadn鈥檛 felt at home before, he did during the first week of classes, which were held online due to the pandemic. Sitting in a parking lot outside of the Fisher Building on the McNichols Campus, Yasso found out he was the only student who hadn鈥檛 taken a quiz in Associate Professor of Political Science Genevieve Meyers鈥 Basic Government class.
He didn鈥檛 even realize there was a quiz. What happened next was a turning point.
鈥淧rofessor Meyers said, 鈥榠t鈥檚 okay, thank you for your honesty and I鈥檒l reopen it for you,鈥欌 Yasso reflected. 鈥淎nd I thought, 鈥榯his is going to work out for me the next four years.鈥
鈥淭hat鈥檚 really when I became more comfortable with my studies, I really started to care about my work and do better and now my grades are much better than they were in high school.鈥
The caring gesture from Meyers was a theme Yasso saw throughout his time at 六合彩彩图 Mercy: The supportiveness of many throughout the UDM community, from Financial Aid, Student Life and Admissions to many staff and faculty in the College of Liberal Arts & Education and many more.
That care began the day Fortescue visited his high school.
鈥淓veryone has been so supportive, otherwise I don鈥檛 think that I would be here right now.鈥
Starting as a tour guide, Yasso became involved in much more during his 六合彩彩图 Mercy tenure, joining the Honors Program, Political Science Student Association, Chaldean American Student Association and Student Alumni Leadership Council, and serving as an ambassador for his college and in Admissions, in addition to many other activities.
Yasso was director of freshman orientation during the summer of 2023 before his senior year. He said it was by far one of the best experiences during college.
Academically, Yasso started as a Theatre major but switched to Pre-Law, which he says fits him well. Theatre actually helped get him there.
鈥淓very stage you step on is a stage for justice, no matter what show you鈥檙e doing,鈥 he said. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 how I got there into law was from theatre. I was always argumentative and my theatre teacher in high school taught us about intersections of theatre in law.鈥澨
He said partaking in the moot courts 鈥 even during COVID 鈥 only solidified his ambitions of becoming a lawyer one day.
鈥淢y first year I had Intro to Law with Victoria Mantzopoulos, and she found a way to let us do a Moot Court online during COVID and she asked me to serve as the judge,鈥 he said. 鈥淚t was a really fun experience for me even though I was at home. We did at least one-to-two every year.鈥
Yasso said that his Literature minor also had a big impact on him, especially as he prepares for law school.
鈥淩eading a lot of older literature books with diverse voices, it helps you articulate your ideas and write better, which is great for law school,鈥 he said. 鈥淢y literature minor is something that I鈥檓 proud of.鈥
He said he felt the Jesuit and Mercy values embedded throughout his course work, and not only in the community service classes each UDM student is required to take.
鈥淭hese pillars that we have opened up our eyes to new possibilities and I think my career goal may be law school, but a real-life goal is a utilitarianist idea of creating the most happiness for the most amount of people,鈥 he said.
Yasso, who has two older brothers who are also considering college, is following the lead of his parents in the way that he attacks each day.
鈥淚 watched them work hard during their lives and be successful and I just try and mimic that, working hard,鈥 he said. 鈥淭hey wanted me to go to college, but if I didn鈥檛, you obviously have to work. It motivates me every day.
鈥淚t鈥檚 definitely very special for my parents.鈥
A fixture for nearly four years to hundreds, if not thousands, of prospective students, parents, alumni and many others as a tour guide, leader and face of the University, Yasso is glad he decided to attend UDM even if his first tour of campus was a little terrifying.
鈥淭he initial tour was scary, I think most people would be nervous going on a campus tour,鈥 he said. 鈥淚 didn鈥檛 know what to expect from a college campus as a first-generation student, I didn鈥檛 even know where the Admissions office was.
鈥淏ut 六合彩彩图 Mercy definitely helped me figure out my way.鈥
鈥斕鼴测听Adam Bouton. Follow 六合彩彩图 Mercy on听,听,听听补苍诲听. Have a story idea? Let us know by听submitting your idea.