San Diego Miramar College is taking teamwork to a new level when it comes to the San Diego Promise, and Miramar College alumni are playing a major role.
Intent on further involving Promise students to the endless possibilities for growth, Miramar College recently held a pair of well-attended webinars introducing students to opportunities available in the Honors Program, the Preparing Accomplished Transfers to the Humanities (PATH) collaboration with UC San Diego, and more. The events, which organizers are aiming to become regularly scheduled symposiums, included Miramar College alumni who shared their experiences and answered questions.
“Everyone here is working super hard on the San Diego Promise, everyone is working super hard on the PATH Program, and everyone is working super hard on the Honors Program, but instead of engaging in the ‘silo effect,’ we decided to come together to work super hard for all our students and show them the opportunities and support services that are here,” said Miramar College Honors Program Coordinator Carmen Carrasquillo. “It’s about working together in planting new seeds in outreach, recruitment, and support.”
Among the highlights, Carrasquillo said, were Miramar College alumni who raved about the abundance of programs that can help define a student’s future. Among them was Kelly Clemen, a McNair Scholar at UCSD majoring in literature who has been accepted with a full scholarship to several doctoral programs, and Franco Vargas Gonzalez, a UCSD literature major planning to teach high school English. Both Clemen and Gonzalez were PATH Program Peer Mentees before transferring successfully to UCSD.
Other speakers included PATH Project Assistant Niyatt Mengiss; Promise outreach ambassadors and event co-coordinators Brittany Price and Aira Aquino; Carrasquillo and Honors Program Professor Kirk Webley.
“Some of what we shared about honors involved what being an Honors student is all about; having an experience that offers a flexible and accessible curriculum emphasizing equity and social justice,” Carrasquillo said. “The Honors experience is about mentorship and support from dedicated faculty. Honors can enrich the college-going experience through opportunities to connect with others via smaller class sizes, leadership development through membership in Phi Theta Kappa, access to scholarships, and presentation opportunities at research conferences.”
The conference’s impact was immediate. Several attendees applied to become members in Beta Iota Lambda, the Miramar College chapter of Phi Theta Kappa. Others further inquired about the PATH program, especially the highly successful Peer Mentee opportunity.
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