JESSICA McGOWAN • Chattanooga, Tennessee

Jessica is in an unstable relationship with the father of her two sons, and she recently moved back in with her mother. She struggles to make ends meet. She finds herself falling behind on child care and utility payments. But Jessica is planning ahead for her and her sons’ futures, taking pharmacy-technician classes at a local college. She recently took a part-time job at Walgreens.

“I feel like a success. My 5-year-old will tell me every day, ‘Mommy, you’re too old to go to school!’, but I tell him that you’re never too old.”