It’s not always cut and dry when it comes to students and their schooling. Often times there are outside contributing factors that can contribute to the success or failure of a student.

Some of the things that affect students during their schooling years are jobs, children, among other things.

English major Marrissa Scott said, “I actually have two jobs. I work as a sales associate for Cost Plus World Market and a plus-size clothing store called Torrid.

“I just try to prioritize everything and when I know I have a certain shift I try to either study before or after. I guess that’s just the typical college life, you just know you’re going to stay up past like 1 a.m. in order to get a paper or homework done.”

To make matters even worse, Scott admitted that she has a learning disability that she has to deal with.

“It has to deal with Math, so I’ve been here quite a while because I’ve failed a Math class, retaken it, failed it, retaken it, petitioned for a Math class and I barely got a passing grade at the end. It’s held me back because it deals directly with numbers,” she said.

As a result of all the difficulties, she has admitted that she has seen a slip in her grades.

“It’s difficult because I’m trying to balance school and work, [with] a learning disability, so that also holds me back. It’s like I have challenges on top of challenges,” she said.

Work and disabilities aren’t the only obstacles in addition to school for students.

Accounting major Victor Villalobos has two children ages 5 and 9.

“I think it gives me my motivation to wake up at two in the morning to study because I can’t at night because they’re either too loud or I need to get them to bed.

“Or being active in student government, knowing that by me showing them what I do impacts how they view the world,” he said.

He had his first child at the age of 17 years old, while being enrolled in a private school.

“I went to a Catholic school and you’re not allowed to have children so I had to keep my daughter under wraps for a year,” Villalobos said.

One thing Villalobos hopes to show his kids is that if he can do it, they can do anything if they work hard for it.

“I’m a single dad so it’s just me. For me I think it’s cool because they have no excuse later in life like, ‘Oh, I’m too tired to go to school.’ Because I’m like, ‘Hey, back in my day we got this done,'” Villalobos said with a smile.

“It shows them that anything is possible,” he added.

Villalobos also serves as pro tempore for ASCC, he is currently the acting chair for ASCC Vice President Enrique Rodriguez.

Being able to manage school with work, disabilities or children is not an easy task to accomplish, but Villalobos has some advice for anyone in a similar position.

“Don’t give up. There is some place, somehow there is help out there. There’s someone out there dealing with the same stuff you’re dealing with,” he said.