My educational journey has been shaped by resilience, community and an unwavering belief in the transformative power of opportunity. Raised in L.A. as the proud youngest child of Guyanese immigrants, I navigated the Los Angeles Unified School District, Santa Monica College, UCLA and California State University, Northridge as a first-generation American and college student. Despite being identified as gifted early on, I encountered racialized, gendered and class-based stereotypes that often framed me as “too much,” and frequent school changes reflected the systemic mismatches that many Black girls experience. Community college became the turning point that demystified higher education and affirmed my potential through professors and counselors who saw and supported me. My path has been non-linear, but it reflects the promise of higher education when equity and student-centeredness are at its core — its ability to change lives, create possibilities and inspire us, as Toni Morrison said, to free and empower others along the way.
The Center for Community College Partnerships (CCCP) grounded me in community, nurtured my academic curiosity and my professional growth. It was at CCCP that I began to have a language for all my educational experiences, that gave me space to process and understand these experiences as systemic. It also fuels my passion and my anger at the injustices as well as inspired me to pursue my career in educational justice, advocacy and student support. CCCP helped me understand persistence is the result of intentional care and culturally responsive support. CCCP was the ultimate example of what higher education should look like when people are invested. CCCP made me believe that higher education is a space for me. As a Black woman, daughter of immigrants, low-income first-generation student, community college alumna and transfer student, I carry a deep commitment to expanding access and closing opportunity gaps for historically excluded students because of CCCP.
Graduating from UCLA was a profound milestone for both me and my family — one that symbolized the fulfillment of sacrifices, dreams and hopes that began long before I ever stepped onto a college campus. Earning my degree from such a prestigious institution represented far more than personal achievement; it was a testament to my parents’ decision to uproot their lives in pursuit of opportunity for their children.
For my family, my graduation affirmed that their hard work, resilience and belief in education had created possibilities that once felt out of reach. For me, it was a moment of reclaiming space in systems that were not built with students like me in mind, and a reminder that community, culturally responsive support and intentional investment make success possible. Walking across that stage at UCLA was not just a celebration of my academic journey — it was a celebration of my family’s legacy, our collective perseverance and the promise that my accomplishments would open doors for others.
Currently I serve in a few roles, including in higher education policy. Additionally, I am on campus serving as a program coordinator for UCLA College Corps and have recently earned my Ph.D. in higher education, with a concentration in community college leadership from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
CCCP is an intentionally designed program that works because of its commitment to centering students, their lived experiences and identities. It provides possibility models for students to see themselves from people who come from backgrounds and similar experiences. CCCP is powerful because you never have to explain yourself and your experiences in higher education, which creates a level of trust between students and programs and by association, institutions.
