ABOVE PHOTO: Dejntxhee Vang, known as DJ, will deliver the graduation speech at Chippewa Valley Technical College and will walk the stage to receive her associate degree in University Transfer–Liberal Arts. Vang is a first-generation college student and plans to attend UW-Stout in her hometown of Menomonie with aspirations of a career in art therapy.
Dejntxhee Vang’s career dreams have ebbed and flowed, mostly influenced by her surroundings.
Vang, known as DJ, yearned to be a farmer like her cousins in Missouri. Her family lived with them when she was young. Her goals morphed into art and design when the family moved to Alaska.
She briefly explored science fields like biology and physics. Ultimately, though, she found a passion for art and psychology.
After delivering the graduation speech and walking the stage to receive her associate degree in University Transfer–Liberal Arts from Chippewa Valley Technical College on Thursday, she plans to pursue a degree in Studio Art at UW–Stout in her hometown of Menomonie, with aspirations of a career in art therapy.
Deciding on college wasn’t easy for Vang. She enrolled at CVTC in 2022 after hesitating and taking multiple campus tours.
“I’m the very first person in my family to actually go to college,” she said.
The decision to go came with uncertainty and pressure. She wanted to choose a program that worked with her end goal. She also put pressure on herself to get good grades.
But that wasn’t all. She joined the Army National Guard after her first semester at CVTC.
“I joined the Army because I knew for sure they were going to change me,” she said. “It teaches a lot of control, leadership … it puts you outside of your comfort zone.”
She faced physical and emotional challenges during training, including illness during her final 10-mile march. But her breakthrough moment came when her drill sergeant and peers encouraged her to keep going.
“I really did push past my limits physically and mentally,” she said. “When I came back to my civilian life, I continued pushing myself. I would have been disrespecting myself if I just left it there in the Army.”
In addition to the Army, CVTC’s Empower Club gave Vang a place to call home. She rose from a general member to President. She participated in leadership trips to Madison and Chicago, which deepened her campus involvement.
“I wasn’t expecting that I would care so much about a club,” she said.
To her, the Club was a microcosm of CVTC as a whole.
The College is more than an academic stop for Vang, it’s a community where she grew in confidence, found her voice and began her journey of helping others, she said.
“I feel (my transformation) has really given me a lot of opportunities. I just really blossomed,” she said. “And I didn’t expect to care so much about my advisors. It’s kind of heartbreaking that I’m graduating because I really care, I have such a strong connection here, and I feel like this is my community.”