{"id":1117,"date":"2016-12-14T15:23:00","date_gmt":"2016-12-14T15:23:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/news.tstc.edu\/?p=1117"},"modified":"2016-12-14T15:23:00","modified_gmt":"2016-12-14T15:23:00","slug":"tstc-students-finds-road-to-success","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/news.tstc.edu\/?p=1117","title":{"rendered":"TSTC Students Finds Road to Success"},"content":{"rendered":"

(HARLINGEN) – Luis Coronado\u2019s father gifted his son a brand new car to celebrate his high school graduation, but with a new baby on the way and the need for a stable career, Coronado had no choice but to sell it for tuition money.<\/p>\n

For Coronado, selling the car went a long way because he graduated Friday from Texas State Technical College with his certificate in Auto Collision Technology, and a job offer in hand.<\/p>\n

He was among the 253 students who received certificates or associate degrees during TSTC\u2019s Fall 2016 commencement ceremonies held at Marine Military Academy.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis car was special to me,\u201d said Coronado. \u201cBut sometimes, you gotta do what you got to do. And I needed money if I wanted to build a meaningful career to provide for my family.\u201d<\/p>\n

Prior to attending TSTC, the Mercedes native worked at the Dish Call Center in Harlingen, along with his fianc\u00e9.<\/p>\n

\u201cI didn\u2019t love what I was doing. I wasn\u2019t happy there,\u201d said Coronado. \u201cBut it was paying the bills, especially with a baby on the \"Luis<\/a>way. So when I ended up leaving for TSTC, it was a huge risk.\u201d<\/p>\n

It was Coronado\u2019s fianc\u00e9 that\u00a0was supporting both of them while he studied, but when life threw them a curveball and she was laid off from her position, they had no choice but to move back in with his parents.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe situation wasn\u2019t ideal,\u201d said Coronado. \u201cBut I\u2019m so glad she never stopped supporting my dream and my parents had our backs. I couldn\u2019t have done any of this without these people in my life.\u201d<\/p>\n

The 23-year-old said having support from his instructors was also a big deal. He said they advised and encouraged him every step of the way, especially when he felt like quitting.<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, I learned the foundation of auto collision and the hands-on experience was invaluable, but the help and support the instructors provide means so much more,\u201d said Coronado. \u201cSometimes students like me need that push, and it makes a world of difference.\u201d<\/p>\n

Coronado took the support and ran with it, applying for every body shop position he could find in the Rio Grande Valley.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhether it was luck or my perseverance, I got a job at Tipton Ford,\u201d said Coronado. \u201cAll I know is I\u2019m blessed to be able to help support my family again, but this time doing what I love.\u201d<\/p>\n

The new Body Man Helper said his investment in TSTC was an investment in his future.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis was a painful process and I can\u2019t believe graduation is here. I\u2019m trying to soak it all in,\u201d said Coronado. \u201cI\u2019ve met all the right people, at the right times, and now my family has a better future ahead.\u201d<\/p>\n

Coronado dreams of living the American dream. Buying a home, maybe someday owning his own body shop business and making his family proud.<\/p>\n

His instructor Jose Vasquez has no doubt in his mind that Coronado will find success.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s the student that would come in early and leave late,\u201d said Vasquez. \u201cWe\u2019re proud of everything he\u2019s had to overcome to find the success he has already. I\u2019m certain with his hard work, dedication and commitment he will go far.\u201d<\/p>\n

Coronado said everything he did was definitely a risk, but a risk worth taking. He is beginning to see the benefits of the sacrifices he and his fianc\u00e9 had to endure during his time in school.<\/p>\n

\u201cEverything is coming together and I couldn\u2019t ask for anything more,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

For more information on Auto Collision Technology call 956-364- 4659.<\/p>\n

Registration for Spring 2017 is in progress. To register or apply anytime visit tstc.edu.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

(HARLINGEN) – Luis Coronado\u2019s father gifted his son a brand new car to celebrate his high school graduation, but with a new baby on the way and the need for a stable career, Coronado had no choice but to sell it for tuition money. For Coronado, selling the car went a long way because he […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":17,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1117","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-harlingen"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.tstc.edu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1117","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.tstc.edu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.tstc.edu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.tstc.edu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/17"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.tstc.edu\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1117"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/news.tstc.edu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1117\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1119,"href":"https:\/\/news.tstc.edu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1117\/revisions\/1119"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.tstc.edu\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1117"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.tstc.edu\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1117"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.tstc.edu\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1117"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}