When Ruby Ramirez found out she was pregnant at 17, she didn’t know what to do. The thought of figuring out how to be an adult and a mother all at once was terrifying.
Ramirez decided to keep the baby and continue with school, pushing herself to build a better future for her family.
Now, she’s graduating from Cal Poly with a bachelor’s degree in business administration with a concentration in entrepreneurship. On Sunday, she will walk at graduation with her three kids. She even got a cap and gown for each of her kids.
“I’ll have him in a chest harness on me and then I’ll be holding my girls’ hands,” Ramirez said. “We’ve been practicing too.”
Ramirez’s kids grew up alongside her Cal Poly experience, attending Cal Poly’s Children’s Center when she was in class.
“In a way, they went to Cal Poly too.We’re graduating together and I just want them to start their young lives with this excitement for school.”
Ruby Ramirez
Ramirez said her kids have been her main motivation for staying in school.
“If I didn’t have them, I don’t think I would have continued because school is really, really hard, at least it was for me,” she said.
Ramirez struggled in high school and never saw herself going to college until she got pregnant with her first daughter.
Not wanting her kids to see her quit, she continued with her education.
“I wanna be their role model. I wanna show them no matter what, no matter how hard it gets, you can do it,” she said.
During her time at Cal Poly, Ramirez has grown passionate about education — sharing that passion with her children.
One of her favorite memories is taking her daughters Jolena, 5, and Isabella, 3, into the Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship’s Hatchery.
“They wanted to know everything about the Hatchery and they asked me a bunch of questions about business and wanted to draw on the whiteboards,” Ramirez said. “And then later on, my daughter was telling me little business ideas and it felt so sweet to just see the positive kind of influence that I’ve had on my children, which I really love.”
Ramirez said she couldn’t have made it through without the support of her family and the Cal Poly Students with Dependents program, which offers a variety of resources including priority registration, financial aid and childcare to pregnant or parenting students.
“I would not have been able to finish my time at Cal Poly without the child care,” Ramirez said. “That was just like a Godsend.”
Ramirez said her family is excited to see her walk across the stage this weekend – her daughters jump and squeal with excitement when they talk about it. After graduation, Ramirez will continue working as a college success coach at Allan Hancock College.