Eriberto Zuniga

On Eriberto Zuniga’s wall is the quote “keep moving forward,” from the animated film “Meet the Robinsons.” It’s a message he carries into his work as a mechanical engineer and in the persistence that shaped his journey.

Triton College was one of the places that helped him move forward, partly inspired by his older brother, Luis, who is a Triton graduate and mechanical engineer. High school instructors were also Triton alumni.

“After going into it and studying it, and my brother showing me all the things that he would do, I knew that’s what I wanted to do for the rest of my life,” said Zuniga.

At Triton, Zuniga said his academic advisor, Karina Santos, encouraged him to apply for the Workforce Empowerment Initiative (WEI), a grant-funded program that provides tuition and holistic services to eligible students.

Because WEI provided the tools Zuniga needed for his courses, he could focus on his studies, and he was surrounded by a team of professionals who all wanted him to succeed.

“All the WEI staff were amazing,” said Zuniga. “They were supportive. They replied quickly to emails. If I ever needed help, I would go to them, and they would give me an answer and try to help me work through it.”

Engineering Technology Faculty Member Antigone Sharris came alongside Zuniga as he mastered challenging hands-on projects.

Zuniga said she’d encourage him to “keep trying it. If it frustrates you, take a break and do it again, because you can only learn through failing.”

When Zuniga knew that some of his advanced mathematics courses would be difficult because he hadn’t yet learned foundational skills like reducing fractions, he sought tutoring from Triton’s Academic Success Center at the beginning of the semester.

Zuniga said that Academic Success Center Coordinator Daisy Dujua expressed surprise to see him on the first day of classes, and that he was one of the first students she saw.

“I went from not being able to reduce fractions to getting an ‘A’ in Calc,” said Zuniga. Other advanced classes followed, including Calculus II and III, Differential Equations, and Physics I and II.

Zuniga was ready to continue his education but found himself needing to “put his dream on hold” and take a job immediately to support his family. “It was a really hard choice, and a really hard year,” he said.

Earlier that year, Zuniga said he was hospitalized for about a month. His mother was also hospitalized for a time and unable to work. Other stresses included Zuniga’s parents’ divorce, his brother’s temporary job loss, and the death of his dog.

Working 60-hours per week at a physically demanding job in welding, “I would pull an all-nighter with my mom at the hospital to make sure she was OK, and then I would go to work the next morning.”

People at Triton supported him in his immediate needs and longer-term goals. Sharris told him he would be a mechanical engineer someday. Instructors worked with him after his hospitalization.

Santos “took time out of her day to listen to my story and make me feel like I belonged and that everything was going to get better, and it’s not always going to be this sad,” recalled Zuniga.

She was right. “Fast forward to me working as a mechanical engineer at a job that requires a bachelor’s,” he said. “I had an associate [degree], but they were so impressed, because I used almost everything that Antigone taught me and my past professors at Triton.”

Zuniga’s company is paying for him to complete his bachelor's degree at the Illinois Institute of Technology (IIT), the same university Zuniga said his uncle attended as a first-generation Mexican American, learning English and engineering simultaneously.

Triton’s Transfer Center made sure his IIT application was complete, while Triton instructors ensured that Zuniga was ready for his courses.

Engineering and Physics Professor Dr. Farzan Ghauri’s classes stood out: “We finished the course material, and he started going into topics at university that we should be prepared for,” said Zuniga.

In his current job, Zuniga said he enjoys “working on designs and materials that are integrated and sold to big customers” using skills like AutoCAD.

“I have so much flexibility to actually live my life and live in my dream field,” he added. “It just doesn’t feel like work when I get here. I come to work with a smile on my face.”

For anyone considering Triton to “keep moving forward,” Zuniga said its cost effectiveness and resources make it a good choice.

What most stands out, however, are its faculty and staff. “I remember their names,” Zuniga said. “I email my professors still and visit them, even though I’m not at Triton.”

At Triton, he continued, “they have very patient instructors that won’t yell at you but instead help you grow as a person.”