Christmas coming early for 250 college graduates

By Anthony Booth | Pulse Staff Reporter

For 250 Palo Alto College students, December is an exciting month for them because it means all of their hard work has paid off in the form of graduation.

Anthony Castillo, a sophomore Business major at Palo Alto College, said, “I’m excited to be graduating college. I feel like I have accomplished a lot in life so far.”

Castillo plans on transferring to Texas Tech University. After completing his education there, he wants to go work for a company in New York City.

No doubt many students graduating in December are excited to be moving on and continuing their education at a four-year university. They think that the education they have received here at PAC has prepared them to be successful no matter where they might transfer to in the near future.

“My experiences here at Palo Alto have really encouraged me,” said Seth Sanchez, a sophomore Kinesiology major at Palo Alto College. “The teachers and the staff here do a wonderful job in helping the students learn, and they made me realize my full potential as a student.”

Sanchez plans to transfer to Texas A&M-Corpus Christi and will eventually go back to Pearsall to coach high school basketball. He believes that more students should attend school here at PAC because it will help them to grow as a person.

Students have taken every aspect that Palo Alto College provides and have used it to gain academic success. By taking advantage of such things as tutoring and other academic-based programs, students have been able to achieve better grades in their classes, which leads to them graduating college successfully.

Joanna Rodriguez, a sophomore Elementary Education major at Palo Alto College, said, “I found the variety of different areas where a student can learn here is incredible. They have tutoring for every subject, and without that kind of help available to me, it would have been hard to get to where I am today.”

Rodriguez plans to transfer to Texas State University and hopes to become a special needs teacher working primarily with younger children.

All the plans and arrangements are being put into action right now to ensure the students are ready to graduate in December. An Academic Achievement Dinner for the graduates will take place on December 13, 2012. The times for this event are from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. at the Student Center on the Palo Alto College campus, and students are encouraged to invite friends and family members to attend. Students must R.S.V.P. for this event by 4 p.m. on December 6, 2012, to Aracely Bowling, recruiter and advisor in the Center for Academic Transitions. For more information, contact Bowling at (210) 486-3133.

The actual commencement ceremony for the December graduates will take place along with the May graduates on May 16, 2013. The graduation will be at the Joe and Harry Freeman Coliseum starting at 7 p.m. Palo Alto College once again invites all to attend to help celebrate this truly joyous occasion as our students graduate from here and continue their education to become successful in school and in life.