Thymen DeWidt’s post-secondary plan is to return to the Netherlands, where he was born. He hopes to reconnect with his roots while studying science at University of Maastricht’s honor’s college, University College Maastricht.
Lorenzo Venegas-Villa sees a difference between a certification, which is a mark of experience, and a degree, which is a show of knowledge in a field. Accordingly, he is pursuing a hydraulics license, which will allow him to gain both knowledge and experience in the field about which he is so passionate.
Paige Mandia will study English at Brandeis University, where she hopes to also participate in musical theatre and social justice groups. One of her primary goals for the future is to contribute to the fight for equality and acceptance in both the United States and the global community.
In the face of a global pandemic, members of the Manchester-Essex Class of 2020 plan to pursue higher education and employment. These eighteen-year-olds aren’t defined by COVID-19. Their eyes are strained forward, fixed on what will be.
Some members of the Class of 2020 are going to four-year colleges after high school. Some are taking a gap year. Some are pursuing employment. The trajectories are endless.
Here are three members of the Class of 2020, each with a different post-secondary plan.
Thymen DeWidt was born in the Netherlands and lived there until he was seven years old, at which point he moved to Manchester.
A member of this year’s graduating class, DeWidt will study at the University College Maastricht, the honors college of the University of Maastricht in the Netherlands, in the fall. He is undecided on his area of study, but he plans to focus on the sciences.
In high school, DeWidt was the president of the Class of 2020, la member of the Peer Mentors, and the captain of the tennis team for two years. In college, he plans to seek leadership roles similar to those he held in high school.
DeWidt said he chose to study in the Netherlands because of his connection to the country.
“I’ve always known that I wanted to go back to my roots,” DeWidt said.
He is excited to attend the University College of Maastricht because of his love for the Netherlands, he said.
“The city of Maastricht is absolutely beautiful, and I love the idea of biking everywhere,” DeWidt said. “It’s great that I get to be closer to my grandparents and other family.”
He said that he is interested in collaborating with professors he met on his visit to the university and is excited about the courses themselves.
“[The courses] are taught through problem-based learning, something that I find absolutely amazing,” DeWidt said.
The graduating class is spread all over the map. DeWidt is exemplary of the Class of 2020’s attitude towards change; he welcomes a fresh start, he said.
Here in the United States, another member of the Class of 2020, Lorenzo Venegas-Villa, is pursuing a hydraulics license. After graduating this year, he said he plans to work his way up the preferred pay scale by obtaining higher licenses.
Venegas-Villa said he currently holds an inspector’s license, which allows him to perform vehicle inspections.
“If I keep with this, I will be going for my CDL or hydraulics license,” he said.
Venegas-Villa started working at twelve years old, lobstering for hours a day. He is currently employed at Intershell, a seafood wholesaler in Gloucester, Mass., as a delivery driver.
Before the pandemic, Venegas-Villa was working and training in a mechanic shop and taking a course to receive certification in engine rebuilding. The pandemic took that opportunity away, but he is intent on continuing to build upon his professional experience after the pandemic.
He said he sees a lot of value in certification, so he chose to learn a trade immediately after high school.
“That’s the benefit of the certifications versus the diplomas in my eyes,” Venegas-Villa said. “The certification says, ‘I have the experience doing this’, and the diploma says, ‘I have knowledge about this’.”
He said he feels that certification is a quicker way into success, and he is not looking for a diploma at this point in his life.
“I have a lot that I want to learn, but… it’s just as beneficial for me to pursue it on my own than it is for me to go to a college,” Venegas-Villa said.
The passion in his voice was evident. Venegas-Villa is graduating with a clear head and a plan, representative of the Class of 2020’s clear thinking and loud voices.
Paige Mandia, another member of the Class of 2020, is also staying local. She will study at Brandeis University in Waltham, Mass., where she plans to pursue a degree in English.
In high school, Mandia was a member of the choir, a capella group, and various musical theatre groups. She said at Brandeis she hopes to join one of the a capella groups on campus and continue her involvement with musical theatre.
Mandia was the president of the Humanitarian League, a club formed to raise awareness and create drives for local and global humanitarian issues. She was also the president of the Gender-Sexuality Alliance.
Mandia said at Brandeis she hopes to become more involved with clubs similar to those she led in high school: “Brandeis is pretty much built on social justice principles, so I want to get involved in a lot of social justice-related clubs at Brandeis.”
“the social justice principles that the school is founded on are super important to me, and after my tour… I could just tell that the students on campus flow so well with my beliefs,” Mandia said. “It just felt like a space where I could be comfortable… and learn more.”
Mandia is a prime example of the change-makers who make up the Class of 2020. A pandemic didn’t need to happen for these young people to grow so quickly into adults, but it may have spurred their collective desire to change the world.
