‘Don’t give up.’ Tri-Cities mom and teen daughter earn CBC degrees, will walk together

Two first-time college graduates are setting the tone for their family and, they hope, the wider Tri-Cities community.

Samira Hefa and her daughter, Amina Mann, are both earning their associates degrees and will walk together at Columbia Basin College’s commencement ceremony Friday, June 14, at the Toyota Center.

“I think it’s incredible,” said Hefa, 43, at her Kennewick home. “I think we’re breaking barriers and changing cycles, and I’m hoping we inspire and motivate others.”

As she ends the sentence, Hefa turns to Mann, 18, sitting quietly next to her on the couch.

“Are you OK with me walking with you?” she asks her daughter in a semi-teasing tone.

The question breaks her silence, revealing a smile and a head nod.

“Yeah,” Mann says, chuckling. “She thought I was going to be, like, mad at her about it, but I’m not. She’s embarrassed by it. But I’m not embarrassed about it, I think it’s cool. I get to walk with my mom.”

Hefa is graduating with her associates in applied science in early childhood education. She plans to pursue a bachelor’s in a similar field of study online with Washington State University or Walden University.

Mann graduated last weekend from Kamiakin High School. She’ll be graduating Friday with her direct transfer associate’s degree from CBC, thanks to the Running Start program, and plans to attend classes this fall at WSU Pullman.

“I’m excited for moving on and going to college and being on my own,” Mann said. “I can see myself having my own apartment soon, having a job.”

Career you love

Hefa credits her current employer, Benton Franklin Head Start, with helping her find a career she’s fallen in love with.

Head Start is an nonprofit offering Tri-City families early childhood education and services, including preschool for low-income and in-need families.

“Head Start gave me and my family a great head start,” Hefa said.

Her two youngest children, 10-year-old Amari and 5-year-old Anthony, are graduates of the program.

Hefa had set aside her previous career working in the medical field to raise a family. But she wasn’t fully sure what would come next after her kids grew up.

In 2018, she began volunteering with the program to give back to her community.

She began thinking about going back to school when the topic of life goals came up during a family-parenting class.

“I loved how the program was ran and I knew then that I wanted to be a part of it,” she said. “And I knew you need education in this world to survive, and I felt like I was good at what I did.”

Hefa said the program opened her eyes to what was possible and the type of life she could build with education. She could see the path forward in her mind. The stay-at-home mom had visions of her own goals and what her own success could look like. She wanted to buy a house.

“I wanted to just pave the way, show my children what hard work does. I wanted to lead by example,” Hefa said. “Today’s world doesn’t really support stay-at-home moms. I never see ‘stay-at-home mom’ and ‘success’ in the same sentence.”

She accepted a job as a Head Start support teacher in 2020 and later moved on to become a lead teacher and eventually work with the nonprofit’s administration. Hefa now works as Head Start’s site supervisor and administrative assistant.

“Their teachers, the executive director and administration saw something in me and believed in me and encouraged me to pursue working there and getting an education,” she said.

Running Start

Hefa calls her daughter’s early success with college “incredible.”

“I wish they had those programs and opportunities when I was in high school,” the 1999 Rainier Beach High School graduate says.

Mom and daughter agree they’ve grown close even as they both worked toward their academic goals. They enjoy traveling together, watching movies and bonding over food.

Mann has had her own hurdles to overcome. Running Start gave her a crash course in adulthood, and being off campus brought along a sense of isolation.

But playing high school soccer with the Kamiakin Braves kept her connected to peers.

Hefa smiles while thinking of the life she’s built.

She’ll be graduating this weekend with high honors and a 3.9 GPA. A year ago, while still working through her classes, she closed on her first home purchase, a five-bedroom located off Canal Drive, where she proudly displays dozens of photos of her family on the living room mantle. Graduation cards and a pair of vases with congratulatory flowers sit nearby.

“I’m hoping we inspire others, especially moms,” Hefa said. “You always hear ‘it’s not too late,’ but it’s really not too late. Don’t give up. Now, I know that — and I’ve got this fire under me.”