In her household, it’s not uncommon to see Angel Chew sitting alongside her two boys, one 13 and the other 15, as they all do their schoolwork.
The family dedicates time to getting their work done together. Chew also balances cooking, cleaning and doing the rest of the duties that come with balancing a full-time job and raising two teenage boys.
However, the past few years of hard work are about to get a little easier as she prepares to cross the stage as an Indiana University Northwest graduate. Sitting on campus, thinking about what that moment will be like, it’s hard for her to hold back the tears.
“I’m almost at the finish line. I did the work and I’m here,” Chew said. “It was a big commitment for me. I know what I want to be and what I want to do, but you don’t know what’s out there until you push yourself.”
While she returned to IU Northwest as a part-time student four years ago, Chew’s college journey didn’t start four years ago — it started nearly two decades ago when she graduated from high school in 2006.
Chew earned her associate’s degree from Robert Morris University in 2008. She came to IU Northwest right after for a semester, but life got in the way of her educational pursuits. Four years later, she went to Purdue Northwest for a semester but also learned she was pregnant and withdrew again.
Working full-time, Chew saw interesting career opportunities pass her by because she didn’t have the right degree or experience to pursue them. Going back to school was always on the back of her mind, but there always seemed to be something in the way.
“You feel like you’re stuck, but you’re not really stuck, you just have to go for it,” Chew said. “I kept making excuses like, ‘Oh, I have two little ones. I need to wait. I have to do this first.’ One day, I was at home and I’m like, ‘I’m going to go. I’m going to do it.’
“It’s the best decision I’ve ever made.”
Returning to college in 2021, Chew wasn’t going to let anything hold her back.
She had recently started a position as a deputy clerk for the Town of Munster and bought a house in Merrillville, Indiana. Balancing being a mom, working full-time and going back to school was certainly an adjustment, but one made possible at IU Northwest.
“It’s been great,” Chew said. “My academic advisors have been wonderful, and the teachers have been flexible as long as you have open communication. … There’s been a lot of support and assistance they make available and you just have to take advantage of it.”
Chew’s classes challenged her and opened her eyes to what’s possible. She remembers a business statistics class she took with School of Business and Economics professor, Surekha Rao, which taught her that statistics are more than just numbers; they tell a story.
And the more Chew learned in class, the more it benefited her everyday life. Recently, she accepted a position as deputy clerk in the Office of the Clerk-Treasurer at the Town of Munster.
But the successes didn’t come without some help and sacrifice. Chew credited her supportive mother, June Chew, who encouraged her to return to school and was always there to help when life got busy.
A month before graduation, Angel Chew was on a trip in the Maldives, but that didn’t mean her assignments stopped.
“Even on that trip, I had assignments that were due, and I was like, ‘OK, you guys, I have to get back to the room and get this done,’” Chew said.
Balancing schoolwork is like anything — you adapt. That’s why Chew sets aside time for her sons and herself to do homework together. It keeps them motivated and focused on the task ahead.
And while they might not fully appreciate it now, Chew hopes her boys will positively reflect on the work she put in and the sacrifices she made to finish her degree.
“I didn’t need to (go back to college), I just wanted to show them that they can do anything they want to do and that it’s never too late to accomplish your dreams,” Chew said. “I want them to see that you can never stop where you are, you can always continue to push forward.”