Vanessa Garza

By Nina Garcia

Vanessa Garza is a sophomore Education major at Palo Alto. As Garza approaches graduation in May 2012, she said it is a bittersweet ending.

“I am so excited about getting my associates degree it’s a huge accomplishment,” she said. “Everything is so nice at PAC, from the campus, to the students and teachers.”

The former three-year graduate of McCollum High School plans on transferring to Texas A&M University –San Antonio in hopes of pursuing a master’s degree in Education. She has always wanted to teach, preferably eight-grade. Garza thinks she has the patience needed to relate to children at the critical age of transitioning into adulthood.

Garza is a full-time student and employee at Tai Sun Chinese restaurant. In addition, she is a two-year participant in Palo Alto’s Ballet Folklorico program. 

“It gets a little hard at times with trying to balance work and school, but dancing helps relieve stress by doing something I love,” she said. “I love being able to be involved in school and show my peers how passionate and diverse I am outside of the classroom.”

She believes hard work is the key to success. Garza is determined to obtain her master’s degree and anticipates the day she has a classroom to call her own.

“Hard work pays off,” she said. “Achieving goals one has set for themselves is the greatest sense of accomplishment, and that is the message I hope to pass along to my future students.