Student defies odds
Delynn Bodine
Mesa Legend
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| Jamar younger Mesa
Legend
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Joseph Luchenta was named
the top community college
student in Arizona. |
Quitting high school, gang life, tattoos and drugs defined the
life of Joseph Luchenta when he was a teenager. Now academics are
his theme, and he has been named the No. 1 community college student
in Arizona and placed on the All-USA Academic First Team ranking
among the top 20 community college students in the nation.
Luchenta was expelled from Camelback High school as a sophomore.
He tried an alternative school next and that did not work out for
him either. All his friends were a part of the gang experience,
and he decided to join too. This was the beginning of two years
of homeless drifting. At that time, he saw his future as a gang
member, dead or in jail.
After watching what had happened to his friends, Luchenta made a
decision one night to go back to his mother’s house. She went
with him the next day to turn himself in after missing a court appearance.
He spent a month in juvenile detention.
Moving in with his father helped him escape his old environment.
He went to work at Blimpie’s sub shop and soon saved up enough
money to move out on his own at 18.
At 19, Luchenta went to back to high school and received his diploma
after two years. During this time, he supported himself by working
20 hours a week at Kinko’s. While at Gateway High School,
he thought trade school would be his only option.
With success at Gateway, along with the encouragement of instructors,
Luchenta found himself eager to obtain a higher education. He was
recommended for and received the President’s Scholarship,
which paid two full years of tuition at MCC.
Luchenta became involved in campus activities immediately. He participated
in the honors program, AmeriCorps and became a writer for the Legend.
He joined the Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society, and served as honors
speaker coordinator and the honor program’s vice president
of scholarship.
“It has been fun to see him grow and progress and see the
value of service and of being a leader. He is a great example of
a student that has taken all of the opportunities given to him.,”
said Duane Oakes, director for service learning.
Luchenta’s neck and hand tattoos were an obvious indication
of his past. He participated in a program sponsored by the city
of Phoenix called X-Tattoo, which removes gang-related tattoos.
The program required him to pay $25 and give 20 hours of community
service for each removal treatment. This experience exposed him
to volunteer work.
Volunteering has become a vital component of Luchenta’s life.
He volunteers six hours a week mentoring teens at Phoenix Youth-at-Risk
program. He said he tries to help others from making the same mistakes
he did. Luchenta has also logged hundreds of hours of service to
the American Cancer Society, the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation and
Mesa Fire Department through the AmeriCorps program.
“Joe and I took Calculus together. I watched Joe work harder
that anyone else in the class. ,” said Barry Osharow, friend
and fellow Phi Theta Kappa officer.
Doug Conway, honors co-coordinator and economics professor, said,
“Joe is one of the reasons I do this. He has gone from being
a really good student to being an extraordinary student.”
Luchenta works in the honors department. He is responsible to help
track approximately 600 honors program students. According to Betsy
Hertzler, honors program co-coordinator, Luchenta is often the first
contact students have with MCC or the honors program and he always
interacts in a caring yet professional manner. Luchenta’s
direction in life comes from his belief that we are all connected.
“I came to the realization that the things I do impact others,
even in a small way.”
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