The following was written by DMACC alum Chris Sabatino and sent to Kristen Hixenbaugh, Online Navigator - Distance Learning and Technology, in an August 2026 email checking in about the next steps in his degree completion process.
Chris was in the TSA program at DMACC starting in 2019, when he earned a Homeland Security certificate. When the TSA-funded online training program was paused indefinitely last year, Chris was able to apply his credits to the Criminal Justice pathway at DMACC. Thanks to support from Hixenbaugh throughout the transition, Chris completed an Associate of Applied Science (AAS) degree in Criminal Justice at the conclusion of the Summer 2026 semester.
DMACC is sharing the letter with Chris Sabatino's consent.
Twenty years.
That is how long it took me to earn my associate degree. When I first started college, I never imagined it would take me two decades to reach this moment. In fact, I’m not sure I ever imagined this moment would happen at all. Like many, I started college with one plan in mind, but life had a different one for me.
My first major was radiology at City Tech in NY. This topic was difficult out of the gate, and I wasn’t ready for the demand right out of high school. Eventually, I changed my major to liberal arts, which was safe but a bit too safe, and it lacked the interest I needed to stay motivated to finish. After some time, TSA had a Homeland Security certification program that could lead to obtaining an associates degree in criminal justice. Along the way, there were plenty of moments when I questioned whether I should continue at all. There were financial challenges, changes in my career, uncertainty about my future, and times when I simply lost the desire to go to school. The Recession of 2008 brought its own challenges. The cost of education continued to rise. Then came the COVID-19 pandemic, changing the world in ways none of us expected.
There were also more personal questions I had inside that I was dealing with at the time. After being away from college for so long, I wondered, "Should I even go back? Is it too late? Does finishing really matter anymore? Can I fit this in between my full-time job, being a married man, and the responsibilities that come with it?"
The answer, I eventually realized, was yes. It mattered. Not because an associate degree would suddenly change everything about my life, but because finishing something I had started so many years ago meant something to me. It represented persistence and perseverance. It represented growth. Most importantly, it represented refusing to let time, circumstances, setbacks, or doubt determine how my own story ended.
While working toward this degree, I was also working full time for the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) — one of the most demanding and impactful jobs in the world. TSA has challenged me professionally and personally in ways that I will take with me after this career is finished. Working in an environment where security, responsibility, and the safety of millions of travelers are part of everyday life taught me lessons that no classroom ever could. Balancing that career with college was not always easy. There were long days, stressful situations, and plenty of reasons to put school off until tomorrow. But eventually, I received a helping hand in an unlikely way at work to jumpstart my desire to finish my degree.
One of the most important parts of my journey was my relationship with Des Moines Area Community College. DMACC became much more than just a college to me. Through its partnership with TSA and its Homeland Security certificate program, DMACC helped reignite something in me that I thought I had lost, the desire to finish my education. That experience opened the door for me to continue pursuing my associate degree and reminded me that education does not have an expiration date and that it can be fun and exciting. The flexibility of DMACC's online courses was also a blessing. Working full time meant that traditional college schedules were not realistic for me. Being able to complete coursework around my professional responsibilities gave me an opportunity to succeed that I might not otherwise have had. The instructors, staff, coursework, and experiences provided exactly what I needed at the right time in my life, and surprisingly, I enjoyed it.
After spending so many years questioning whether I belonged in college, I found myself enjoying the learning process. The work was challenging, but it was also interesting, relevant, and sometimes even entertaining. My experiences at DMACC reminded me that learning isn't something that belongs only to young people sitting in a classroom. Learning belongs to everyone, at every stage of life.
That is the message I hope someone takes from my story. It doesn't matter how long it takes. It doesn't matter if you change your major. It doesn't matter if you take a semester off… or several years. It doesn't matter if life gets in the way. It doesn't matter if you have to start over. And it doesn't matter if you are twenty, forty, sixty, or beyond. What matters is that you don't give up on yourself. Maybe your goal is an associate degree. Maybe it's a bachelor's degree, a master's degree, or a doctorate. Maybe your goal isn't even a degree at all. Whatever it is, don't let the amount of time it takes convince you that the goal is no longer worth pursuing. There were many points in my life when I could have walked away from college and never looked back. Nobody would have blamed me either. Life was busy. Work was demanding. Circumstances changed. And after twenty years, it would have been easy to say, "What's the point?" But I kept coming back. Sometimes I took a step forward. Sometimes I stood still. Sometimes I took a step backward. But eventually, all of those steps added up to something.
Today, I can finally say I finished. This degree represents far more to me than the piece of paper I will receive at graduation. It represents every time I chose to keep going when quitting would have been easier. It represents every late night, every assignment, every class, every change in direction, and every moment of doubt that I pushed through. It represents twenty years of my life.
To DMACC, thank you for giving me the opportunity to finish what I started. Thank you for working with TSA, for providing opportunities for working professionals, and for creating programs and courses that allowed someone like me to return to college after being away for so long. Most importantly, thank you for reminding me that it is never too late to continue learning and growing. To the instructors and staff who helped me along the way, thank you for your patience, your knowledge, your encouragement, and for making the experience meaningful.
And to anyone reading this who has a goal they have put on hold, I hope you remember one thing: Don't confuse taking a long time with failing. Life isn't a race, and education isn't a race either. Your journey may look completely different from someone else's. You may take a different road. You may change directions. You may have setbacks. You may need to stop and start again.
That's okay. Keep going. Keep learning. Keep growing. Keep becoming a better version of yourself. Because the person who finishes after twenty years is not the same person who started twenty years ago—and that's the beauty of the journey. I started this journey as one person, changed majors, changed careers, faced uncertainty, experienced setbacks, and questioned whether I should continue. Today, I finish it as someone who understands that perseverance is not about never struggling. Perseverance is about refusing to let the struggle have the final word. So if you're wondering whether it's too late to finish your degree, learn something new, change careers, or pursue a dream you put on the shelf years ago, let my story remind you. Never stop learning. Never stop growing. And most importantly, never give up on yourself.