Only a few months of the semester had passed, but Abdellah Krebs knew he would transfer from the remote, upstate New York college. He lived on the college’s huge campus, but despite its size, the area was too quiet for the Philadelphia native.
Moreso, his father was home dealing with diabetes and heart issues. He felt compelled to return to Philadelphia.
“I just kept thinking when I was up there that I should be closer to home,” Krebs said. “If there was anything I had to deal with, I could be home faster to help out.”
When Krebs started his first college search, he accompanied his friend, Phaizon Thompson, to a Manor College Open House. Krebs had already committed to his former college but fell in love with the way professors were open and interested in their students. In New York, Krebs lost his desire to discover new things, but hearing Thompson talk about life at Manor left him envious.
“I took a semester off to try and discover different things, and what I learned was how much I missed school,” Krebs said. “When I was in high school, I wanted to help out. I liked being a part of extracurricular activities. At Manor, I want to continue to do that.”
Krebs enrolled at Manor for the Fall 2024 semester and plans to study for his associate’s degree in Early Childhood Education. The idea of working in education began in high school. Krebs would talk to teachers and even volunteered to work with special education children.
“I just always enjoyed it,” Krebs said. “I’d teach them how to count and help them learn their ABCs. They didn’t always know how to talk to people. It was great to see how you can make an impact.”
That impact is what drives Krebs to become a teacher.
“In this day and age, education is important, especially for younger groups,” Krebs said. “I had good teachers growing up, but not many people have that. I want to be that for others.”
Learn more at Manor College. Manor College is a private, Catholic, co-educational, independent institution of higher learning founded in suburban Montgomery County in 1947 by the Byzantine Ukrainian Sisters of Saint Basil the Great.
