{"id":23890,"date":"2021-11-29T20:04:32","date_gmt":"2021-11-30T01:04:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom2\/2021\/11\/30\/from-boxer-to-accountant\/"},"modified":"2026-05-13T15:25:24","modified_gmt":"2026-05-13T19:25:24","slug":"from-boxer-to-accountant","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/2021\/11\/29\/from-boxer-to-accountant\/","title":{"rendered":"From Boxer to Accountant"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"<\/a>

Iseline Mendoza, NECC Accounting Student and Student Government President.<\/p><\/div>\n

After graduating from Lawrence High School in 2014, Iseline Mendoza of Lawrence spent six years pursuing her boxing career.<\/p>\n

\u201cI had some sponsorships and I was hoping to go pro,\u201d she says, calling herself \u201ca very aggressive fighter.\u201d<\/p>\n

That all changed when she became pregnant with her now two-and-a-half-year-old son.<\/p>\n

Months later, Mendoza, who was living in Connecticut at the time, found herself alone with her six-month old baby when her husband was incarcerated.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was tough when we were by ourselves,\u201d she explains. \u201cI realized that I didn\u2019t want to be dependent on a man. I wanted to get my education, so I was in a position where I could always be there for my son and support him.\u201d<\/p>\n

Mendoza reached out to her mother and asked to come back and live with her in Lawrence, while studying for an accounting degree<\/a> at Northern Essex Community College.<\/p>\n

\u201cI said \u2018please let me live in your house for two years for free. I\u2019m going to get school done. After that it\u2019s up to me,\u201d she says. Her mom said yes, and it\u2019s worked out for the entire family, growing the relationship between mother and daughter. She, her husband, and son have now moved to their own apartment, just one floor up from her mother, who continues to help her out.<\/p>\n

Mendoza chose accounting because she\u2019s always been good with numbers and money, and it\u2019s a practical career with many career opportunities.<\/p>\n

She keeps the books for her uncle\u2019s flooring company and last semester had an accounting internship at EN Business Solutions in Lawrence. This spring, she will be working almost full time for H&R Block, while applying to UMass Lowell\u2019s Accounting Program with plans to start in the fall after receiving her associate degree this month.<\/p>\n

At Northern Essex, Mendoza, who is president of the Student Government Association<\/a> and an honors student, says she found a culture of support and positivity. \u201cEveryone wants you to win, everybody.\u201d<\/p>\n

Through the help of NECC\u2019s Counseling Services<\/a>, she also discovered an undiagnosed mental illness, which she views as a blessing since it\u2019s helped her to understand and manage the frequent ups and downs she experiences. \u201cI was excited to get diagnosed,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n

Mendoza shares her story in the hopes that it will inspire others to continue their education. \u201cSome people are so whooped with working and other things that they think they can\u2019t do it.\u201d<\/p>\n

She also appreciates the support she\u2019s received from her extended family, which includes her husband, mother, uncle and step dad. \u201cThis is a privileged position. I\u2019m so thankful to be able to go to college.\u201d<\/p>\n

To learn more about the accounting program at Northern Essex, visit the website<\/a> or contact Enrollment Services, admissions@necc.mass.edu or 978 556-3700.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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