Most MassBay students are more than just students – many work multiple jobs, many are raising children or caring for family. Many, even with generous scholarships and tuition programs, face significant financial challenges. And when money is tight, basic needs like food, rent, heat, and medical care must be prioritized over academic needs like textbooks.
When students don’t have their textbooks at the start of the semester, they fall behind very quickly. MassBay experience shows that students who do not get their books within the first few weeks of class are much more likely to drop out.
This past weekend, Stacey Okada, a Wellesley resident who graduated from MassBay and now serves on the Foundation Board of Directors, spoke movingly about the transformational impact of the support and financial assistance she received as a student:
I’m Stacey Okada, and I’ve been on the Foundation Board of Directors for about five years now. But… my connection to MassBay began in 2013 when I, having just had a baby ten weeks prior, and while also raising a toddler, enrolled as a student in the MassBay Biotech program.
That decision, along with a professor who saw something in me and steered me towards… applying for the scholarships that saw me not only through my education at MassBay, but then beyond to my bachelor’s degree – that’s how I went from being a high school runaway who slept in homes under construction to being a biochemist whose kids attend one of the best school systems in a state that is number one in the nation.
My kids will feel it, as will their kids. This is generational. That is the power of MassBay. This work matters. These scholarships matter…
These students are scrappy. They work hard. They’ve had nothing handed to them. I cannot express how it felt the day I learned I’d been awarded my first scholarship. I’d only applied because my professor made me. It never occurred to me that I’d win. I felt seen, validated, like my hard work mattered, and I felt so incredibly inspired to keep going, to aim higher, and above all, above all, to one day pay it forward. Which is why, ten years after graduating … I’m still here, talking to all of you…
One scholarship, one student who then goes forth to help ten more – this is how we turn a ripple into a wave.
(Click here to watch the recording of Stacey’s talk last Sunday.)
I’m Stacey Okada, and I’ve been on the Foundation Board of Directors for about five years now. But… my connection to MassBay began in 2013 when I, having just had a baby ten weeks prior, and while also raising a toddler, enrolled as a student in the MassBay Biotech program.This is where our Lenten Gift comes in. Our gift will help the Foundation expand the program to provide assistance to more students and increase the size of the grants they are able to give. Every student deserves the chance to succeed. Through our Lenten Gift we are helping our neighbors on their pathway to success. On behalf of the Collaborative Service Commission, we ask that you prayerfully consider being as generous as your means will allow.
To make a donation and for more information about MassBay Community College, the students, the Foundation’s work, and our Lenten Gift, please visit our Lenten Gift Page!
Cash or checks (made payable to your parish with “2026 Lenten Gift” in the memo) may be placed in the special Second Collection this weekend. Checks may also be mailed to the Collaborative Business Office (39 Washington St. Wellesley, MA 02481) or dropped at either parish office during business hours.
Donate online at any time on our Lenten Gift Page!