LEWISTON – Central Maine Community College students Thuan Ha and Lisa Patton were honored Friday for overcoming odds and succeeding in college in big ways.

Ha and Patton were given excellence awards at College for ME-Androscoggin’s annual ceremony celebrating success stories.

College for ME-Androscoggin is a group of area college and business leaders working to increase the number of college graduates in Androscoggin County.

Ha, 34, of Auburn will graduate in May with an associate degree in architectural and civil engineering. The “ACE” program is traditionally male dominated, but Thaun “has learned to hold her own as the lone female in the senior class,” said CMCC’s Kathleen Harrison. A single mother, Ha was praised as being a role model to her three daughters, ages 16, 14 and 11, and someone who has led other students.

At her college, Ha represents her architectural and civil engineering program as a student senator and is a member of the Women in Technology program. She frequently helps other students with time management, developing good study habits and balancing academics with home and work, Harrison said.

When she was 11, Ha and her family left war-torn Vietnam “after years of red tape and personal tragedy,” Harrison said. Her family moved from Minnesota, then Auburn. She graduated from Edward Little in 1993.

She became a full-time college student after her children were old enough to be somewhat self-sufficient. Ha paid for her education through grants and loans. The toughest part of college “was waiting until my kids were old enough,” Ha said. She recommends others interested in college “hang on in there. It’s worth it.”

After graduation, Ha hopes to work for an architectural company and to continue her education. She wants to eventually go back to Vietnam and open a health clinic on her family’s property.

Patton, 36, of Livermore Falls will graduate in May in early childhood education. She earned a 3.9 GPA, last year was CMCC’s Student of the Year, and is the college’s nominee for the “All-USA Today Academic All-American Team,” said college assistant dean Roger Philippon.

Patton is also president of Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society and the Lakeside Players. She’s provided help and support to her blind parents and five older siblings, her husband and three daughters.

A 1989 graduate of Livermore Falls High School, Patton went to college after becoming involved in her children’s Head Start program. At first she volunteered, then received training to become a substitute teacher. At age 33, she discovered teaching was her calling.

Patton said her biggest challenge “is there aren’t enough hours in the day.” She advises other potential students, especially young parents, that college “is definitely doable. There’s a great support network out there. Everyone wants you to succeed.”

She said her future is in education. “I want to be a Head Start teacher,” Patton said. “I want to pay them back.”