• CCRI Home
• Marketing and Communications
• Achieving Dreams
• Manny Alves

Student-athlete prepares for financial services career

Always a star on the field, it has taken Knights men’s soccer captain Manny Alves a few years to find his calling in the classroom.

He first came to the Community College of Rhode Island in 2005 but left after two semesters to work and help his family pay bills. Now that his family is on stronger financial footing, Alves returned to CCRI in 2009 and has been taking classes part time around his work schedule. What’s different this time is that he knows exactly what he wants to learn.

“I kept searching around and seeing what best fit me and I noticed that math and numbers are my strongest subjects,” Alves said, “so I figured I would take a chance and see how I would do in finance.”

Now a Financial Services major focused on banking, Alves has an internship with Fidelity Investments and is planning to earn his bachelor’s degree after graduating from CCRI at the end of the year.

“I’ve been very successful in the classroom and outside the classroom so I figured that would be the best option for me,” he said. “I don’t want to stop with just an associate degree.”

Alves, 25, was born in Cape Verde and came with his family to Pawtucket at age 9. He graduated from William Davies High School in 2004.

A lifelong soccer player, Alves is a member of many local leagues and teams including one founded by other Cape Verdean immigrants. This last academic year marked his first season playing for the CCRI Knights but he was immediately chosen as captain because of his long experience with the sport.

“The season started off rough because it was a young team and it was hard getting guys in the right positions,” Alves said. “We lost our first three games but then we won the next and that lightened everybody up. We started believing in one another and being there for one another and it gave us the motivation that we can win games. We stayed consistent for the rest of the season.”

Alves said that being a part of CCRI athletics provided a strong support network for him. “They’re very helpful when it comes to coaching and helping you out,” he said. “Once you make the team, everybody becomes a family.”

As a dedicated player, Alves believes in working on his weaknesses and improving himself, which is exactly why he wanted to finish his college degree. “I basically want to better myself with education and better myself in the job field,” he said.

Alves will take five courses in the Fall 2012 semester and graduate in December.

“CCRI is a great opportunity and a good school to start off,” he said. “You can’t just sit around at home and wait for schools to contact you; you’ve got to make the first move, and CCRI will help you out with whatever you need to accomplish.”

This page developed and maintained by Marketing and Communications. Send comments and suggestions to .