Yari

I have spent the past few years at Austin Community College pursuing an associate degree. During my time at ACC, I have developed a plan for my future and gained the resources necessary to achieve my goals. I have been offered career opportunities and internships and been accepted into excellent four-year institutions with offers of scholarships to continue my education. All of these opportunities can be attributed to my choice to attend ACC and the dedicated professors, staff, and Student Life team that helped me get where I am today. ACC was my start and has provided me with the opportunity to build a strong foundation for pursuing my dreams. While at ACC, some of my accomplishments include maintaining a 4.0GPA, making the President\'s Honor Roll, being selected as a member of the All-Texas Academic Team, and being inducted into Phi Theta Kappa. I was also the recipient of the Phi Theta Kappa scholarship and Coca-Cola Foundation scholarship, awarded the prestigious Student Government Commitment to Excellence Award, and nominated for the Presidential Student Achievement Award. I am also proud to have held an internship with one of the most prestigious and powerful Texas State Senators, Judith Zaffirini. As a student at ACC, I have grown rich in experiences and opportunities. I dedicated myself to studies and was ecstatic when I received an invitation to join Phi Theta Kappa, the honors society for two-year institutions. With this organization, I explored volunteering with the Austin State Hospital, Blue Santa, Texas 211 Emergency Services during hurricane Ike. I also supported causes such as Out of the Darkness depression awareness and Breast Cancer Awareness. My involvement inspired me take on new service commitments such as the AmeriCorps College for All Texans Program where I contributed 675 hours encouraging and assisting high school students to go to college. In addition, I volunteered 130 hours to Literacy Austin teaching students from Mexico, Peru, Vietnam, France, North Korea, India, and Ethiopia improve their skills in English literacy. Determined to get the most out of my time in college, I chose to get involved with the ACC Student Life. The Student Life team is composed of gifted individuals who collaborate to provide the opportunities and resources necessary for students to explore their potential as leaders. Students can create clubs or join existing ones, host and attend events, and find ways to explore and express their dreams. I attended several Student Life activities including the Black Carpet event, Latino Conference, Nutz & Boltz Workshop, and Nite in the Life. An organization that Student Life supports which I chose to become involved with is the Student Government Association. I was elected by the students as a Senator for the Cypress Creek campus and later served on the Executive Council as the Senate Chair for all campuses. I had the honor of representing my college in Washington D.C. at a student government conference where we developed leadership, teamwork, and communication skills during the daytime and explored our nation’s capital at night. I was also proud to be a panelist at the Student Leadership Conference where I had the opportunity to listen to and address student’s opinions and ideas for ACC. As an officer of the Student Government Association, I was given the opportunity to assess my leadership potential by finding new ways to represent our student body and planning functions for the students to enjoy. I learned a lot about sacrifice and teamwork when I contributed to Black Out, the Student Government Association’s! game night. As the Election Commissioner, I orchestrated the Meet the Candidates event and student government elections for 34,000 student voters. Some of the greatest rewards I have received while at ACC include many friendships that have influenced and nourished my growth. Perhaps it is because of the kind-natured and spirited populous drawn to Austin, Texas, but I truly feel surrounded and supported by open-minded, creative, and genuine students, faculty, and staff. I have become part of my community and will find it difficult to move on. I cannot imagine having developed relationships as sincere and unique as these at any other two-year institution as they could have only been developed in an environment as unique as the one at ACC. On May 14th, 2009 I graduated with an Associate of Arts degree in government. Next, I will transfer to a four-year university to pursue my bachelor degree. I have applied and been accepted to the University of California at Berkeley where I would study Peace & Conflict Resolution and have been offered approximately $15,000 in scholarships and grants to attend. According to U.S. News, U.C. Berkeley ranked as the second best college in the world to pursue social sciences in 2008. I have also been accepted to the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill where I would study Peace, War, and Defense and have been offered a laptop to assist in my studies. As a side note, one benefit of membership in Phi Theta Kappa is that many four-year institutions around the country offer scholarship opportunities to transfer students. As a member of the All Texas Academic Team I was offered a full scholarship to attend the University of Texas at Arlington. I plan to get a master’s degree and teaching certificate so that I can fulfill my lifelong dream to serve with the Peace Corps by teaching English in other countries. With a degree in peace studies I have the flexibility of pursuing various careers including Foreign Service, advising, becoming a politician or lobbyist, mediation, and even hostage negotiation. At the end of my career, after gaining extensive experience, I hope to become a professor and share my knowledge with others. Through hands-on career exploration, distinctive experiences, and the bountiful guidance offered at ACC, I found my true passion. Finally, my dream has come to fruition and I am ready to continue onto the next part of my journey.

Submitted at Are You ACC?