A happy twist of fate brought Thais O'Malley to College of Lake County (CLC) as a student after she came to the United States as an au pair from Brazil. Taking college classes was a key step for learning skills which lead to her successful career and creative journey.

Born and raised in Brazil, O’Malley decided she wanted to come to America in 2016 when she was 22 years old working as an au pair to experience American culture. An au pair is defined by the Federal Register, as “foreign nationals who travel to the United States on a J-1 visa to live with an American host family, while caring for the host families' children, enrolling in educational programs and engaging in a variety of cultural activities.” She was placed with a family in Buffalo Grove.

As part of the program, O’Malley was required to enroll in six college credit hours. She started taking a few classes just for fun but having grown up with an interest in being an artist, she wanted to take classes in the art field. While she had a love for art, it was what she did with her art online that led her to the digital media and design program.

“As a teenager, I started more blogs than I can count,” O’Malley said. "However, they never went anywhere in terms of content. I realized it was the design process that sparked something different in me.”

With a different reality in her home country, O’Malley couldn’t see graphic design as a career choice. When she learned that CLC had an outstanding graphic arts program, she saw an opportunity to make her dream a reality. Thanks to her instructors, she was able to quickly learn and grasp the skills.

“The instructors are amazing at what they do,” she said. “The fact they make you think outside of the box is huge. They knew what skills I needed for a career and emphasized the importance of applying them in the real world.”

Along with her courses, O’Malley interned at CLC’s Robert T. Wright Gallery of Art. She used her graphic design skills to create posters and other printed material to promote the shows. She also helped set up the space, hang artwork, and prepare the gallery between exhibitions.

While working as an au pair, O’Malley met her now husband and decided to stay in the United States with him. She was happy when she learned that her associate degree along with the skills acquired at CLC were sufficient to land her a great job in the field.

For the last three years, she has been a graphic designer and social media specialist for the City of Lake Forest, doing tasks such as creating print and digital graphics and designing newsletters.

“As Thais's teacher and manager, I can tell you that her story is the epitome of the American dream,” Art Gallery Curator Ann Rintz said. “She came to this country to study and create a new life for herself and she did exactly that. Excellence was her only goal, and she achieved this time and time again. I always tell her story to my students as inspiration for their own personal journeys.”

O’Malley also works as a photographer, a skill she perfected taking classes at CLC. Though she considers it a side gig, she often has her weekends booked for taking pictures.

“The quality of the program helped prepare me for the real world,” O’Malley said. “I got my job right after graduation. I thanked my teachers because they prepared me so well.”