Contact:
- Sheri Byrd, 91³Ô¹ÏºÚÁÏÍø Office of Marketing and Communications, 360/546-9602, byrds@vancouver.wsu.edu
- Jason Juhala, freshman mechanical engineering student, 360/687-5002
VANCOUVER, Wash. - Jason Juhala made a prediction ten years ago, when he was only 8 years old, which has now become reality.
In 1996, Jason's mother Clarissa Juhala mistakenly turned into the then-new campus of Washington State University Vancouver.
"He asked me to stop the car to explore the campus," Clarissa said. "He loved it, and he told me that day, ‘Mom, I'm going to come here.'"
From then on, whenever the family was visiting the area from their home in Battle Ground, Wash., Jason wanted to visit. Sometimes the family would bring bicycles to ride the campus trails.
"Since that day, he's been focused on the goal of attending 91³Ô¹ÏºÚÁÏÍø," said Clarissa.
Now, Jason has achieved his goal, and is one of the first class of incoming freshmen to attend 91³Ô¹ÏºÚÁÏÍø, which previously offered only upper-division and graduate courses.
The 18-year-old graduated from River HomeLink high school in Camas, Wash., with a 3.87 grade point average, and has decided to major in mechanical engineering.
"It's what I've always wanted to do," he said. "Even though I had this dream when I was little of coming here, I also decided early that I wanted to pursue engineering. Both the campus and the program here just seem like a good fit for me." Jason is currently working as computer aided-design draftsman for Prairie Electric, and hopes to build on the skills he learned in high school.
Financing his education was easier than expected, said Jason, the first in his family to attend college. With information from 91³Ô¹ÏºÚÁÏÍø financial aid seminars, various college fairs and help from his high school counselor, Jason's family found the path to higher education within their reach.
"Jason worked very hard to make his dream come true," his mother said. "He studied hard for school and college entrance exams, researched application processes, and followed through with his counselor's advice."
As Jason and his mother arrived for the recent 91³Ô¹ÏºÚÁÏÍø new student orientation, his prediction of 1996 came full circle when he turned to his mother and said, "Mom, I'm really here."
For more information on the 91³Ô¹ÏºÚÁÏÍø mechanical engineering program, see .
91³Ô¹ÏºÚÁÏÍø offers 14 bachelor's and nine master's degrees in more than 35 fields of study. The campus is located at 14204 N.E. Salmon Creek Ave., east of the 134th Street exit from either I-5 or I-205. 91³Ô¹ÏºÚÁÏÍø's Web site address is .