Hisham Mohammed has been through a lot to get to where he is. Growing up in Iraq, Mohammed was injured by a bomb when he was a child, and he is paralyzed from the neck down. His father took him to Russia and Jordan for multiple surgeries before his entire family moved permanently to the United States in 2008. 

After graduating from Upper Merion High School in 2016, Mohammed followed in his three older brothers’ footsteps by coming to Montgomery County Community College.  

When I graduated from high school, I still was not sure what I wanted to do, Mohammed said. My brothers told me that Montco is a good start, and it was a great choice financially.

As a Liberal Studies major, Mohammed was exposed to wide variety of classes that helped him explore his options. He recalls Honors English with English Professor Dr. Marc Schuster and Introduction to Acting with Theatre Assistant Professor Tim Gallagher as his most fun classes. He credits Intro to Human Development and Human Services class and Human Services Senior Lecturer Lori Schreiber with directing him on his current path. 

During his time at Montco, Mohammed joined the Montco Radio club and hosted his own show in which he shared not only his personal history, but also the history of his home country of Iraq, beginning with ancient history leading up to the current war.  

Mohammed also is proud to be a member of the Philadelphia Flyers PowerPlay Power Wheelchair Floor Hockey Team. Mohammed has been involved with the team since he and his dad met the coach when Mohammed was in seventh grade. Mohammed was eager to get involved. 

“I was surprised something like that existed,” he said. “It’s exciting that a sport like powerhockey can exist for people in wheelchairs.” 

In the summer of 2018, Mohammed got the opportunity to play defense for the PowerPlay Tournament team. In his first year on the team, they won the 2018 Powerhockey Cup.  

Mohammed plans to continue on the team for the foreseeable future. He is looking forward to the 2020 Cup in Toronto, where he and the team can defend their title.  

After everything he’s been through, Mohammed wants to use his experience to help others. He plans to attend Penn State Brandywine where he will study Human Development and Family Studies. Mohammed thinks this is the best major for him because he is passionate about interacting with others and helping people.  

“Since I know the struggles of growing up with an injury I can relate to a lot of people with injuries and disabilities,” he reflected. “I think I can have empathy and figure out the best way to help them.”  

Mohammed has been happy to share his story to help other people and is currently working on a book about his life. 

His advice to others is the same motto he follows: “Spread good whenever you can. Always do the right thing.” 

Mohammed spoke about his story and his time at Montco on MCCC on the Air, the College’s podcast.