Here at the University Center at College of the Canyons, the Associated Student Government brought students and COC Alumni together for an evening of connection and learning.
The Associated Student Government hosted an Alumni Dinner, encouraging students to attend and hear alumni share their experiences from this very campus.
For students, this was a chance to learn from people who walked in their shoes.
“We felt that students needed an event where they could connect to past alumni in order to gain experiences, in order to network, in order to find out what skills they should have in order to transfer, because a lot of students are hoping to transfer from COC to a four-year university,” said Areesh Fatima, a COC ASG Student Trustee.
At the very start of the dinner, ASG invited six alumni and asked them various questions about their educational backgrounds and where they have led them today.
“I honestly loved community college like I got to take a bunch of fun classes, got access to a lot of opportunities, and there’s some stuff that I got to do here that people I go to school with didn’t even get to do yet, so it’s really given me a leg up,” said Isabella Guzmán, a COC Alumna that attended the event.
And to help everyone feel connected, ASG created a bingo game for attendees to walk around and mark down the numbers that matched on the boxes.
After these fun activities, everyone was free to spark conversations about mentorship and career insight.
“To help students network, that’s the primary goal,” said Fatima.
“We want students to gain experiences, build connections that last even beyond this event.”
ASG officers created a space for students to build connections and gain insight into life after college, because although the destination is important, the journey is just as fun.
“All the COC students here and alumni connect really well, and I hope they can kind of see them as mentors and see that their path is attainable, they can attain their goals, they can, you know, be who they want to be, career-wise,” said Amna Fadel, COC ASG President.
