A 23 year-old woman from Alabama is about to graduate with two college degrees after giving birth to twin baby girls.
Montoya Major is graduating from Nova Southeastern University in Florida on August 16 with a bachelor’s in cardiovascular sonography and a master’s in health science. This achievement is all the more laudable given the fact that Montoya gave birth to twins while taking part in the program.
Montoya took to Facebook to share the news of her achievement at the end of July, never thinking it would go viral. Since then, her post has garnered nearly 3,000 likes and 1,000 shares.
Montoya explained that she started her duel degree at Nova Southeastern in May 2017, soon after receiving a bachelor’s degree in biology from Alabama Agricultural & Mechanical University that same year. Five months later, 700 miles away from home, she was stunned to learn she was expecting twins.
“My initial thought, when I found out I was pregnant, was, ‘What am I going to do with a child?'” Montoya said. “I was living in Florida, away from all my family and friends. Having kids was never a thought of mine. I wanted to pursue my degree and establish a career.”
“I knew that now, my entire thought process would have to be re-evaluated, and I needed to figure out what to do next,” she added.
Even though the academic director of her program told her that it would be “nearly impossible” to complete her studies with two babies on the way, she remained laser-focused on her studies, attending class “every single day literally until the day I gave birth.”
Montoya gave birth to Makenna and Makinlee via C-section in May of 2018, and just one month later, she was back in the classroom.
View this post on Instagram
First day of clinical rotations , safe to say the twins are unbothered ?
Montoya credits her father for giving her the strength to have her twins while also working towards her degrees.
“Throughout this entire journey my father encouraged me the most although he was not physically there. My father and I are very close and have always been inseparable after my mother passed when I was young,” she said. “Whenever I had an episode of wanting to quit school he always encouraged me that it would be worth it in the end.”
Though it was difficult to get through these obstacles, Montoya drew on the support of her loved ones as well as her own personal strength to get her through.
“I am a completely different person since giving birth,” she said. “I honestly feel like if it wasn’t for them I would not have been the strong woman I am today. I would have never physically, mentally, or spiritually pushed myself in ways that I have since they were born.”
While Montoya has gotten a lot of support on social media, she has admitted that there have been people trying to bring her down.
“I don’t let the negative comments get me down because I have accomplished and been through so much in these past two years,” she said. “I will always be happy for myself because I have an education that no one could ever take away from me. In the end I will forever be able to provide for my children.”
“I just want to inspire other parents regardless if they are married or doing it completely alone to go for their dreams. Having a child is not the end of your education,” Montoya added. “You will go through many obstacles but ultimately you can do anything you put your mind to.”
COMMENTS POLICY: We have no tolerance for messages of violence, racism, vulgarity, obscenity or other such discourteous behavior. Thank you for contributing to a respectful and useful online dialogue.