Bright Light Awards
Fall 2011 Winner
Alicia Juarez
Educational Opportunity Program
Bright Light Award Fall 2011
Alicia Juarez, Bachelor of Science in Graphic Communication, Fall 2011
When considering which university she would attend for Fall 2009, Alicia Juarez was “determined to get into a school that I felt would provide me with the best resources and have the classes and programs that would complement my interests and current skill sets.” She chose to apply to two schools after attending community college and when she attended Cal Poly’s SOAR program, she was sure that Cal Poly was the “best and only choice” for her; she felt especially excited and committed to her major in Graphic Communication “after listening to the professors and enrolled students talk about the department.”
Like many transfer students, selecting Cal Poly and attending Cal Poly were two very different tasks, however, Alicia had to learn first-hand how to transform her challenges into successes on our demanding and highly-competitive campus. Alicia shared her approaches to becoming successful at Cal Poly, including “managing time to commit to both education and the job(s) that are supporting your education is definitely a struggle that can at times be discouraging. It was important to prioritize and commit to my education here at Cal Poly. Self-confidence was also a challenge that has been a personal struggle throughout the years and keeping this in check was really imperative. When I found myself doubting my decisions about what I could handle between work and school, I always told myself that it could be worse. Being grateful for what I’ve been able to accomplish and experience has proved to be the drive that has helped encourage me through difficult times.” Alicia worked a long schedule at Costco to support herself financially, up to 30 hours a week or more while also achieving academic excellence in her major, impressive accomplishments in themselves. Learning to achieve a balance between school, work and personal responsibilities was clearly important to her Cal Poly success.
When asked about what she is proud of having accomplished at the university, Alicia shared her main accomplishment is attaining her degree “at an amazing university full of devoted staff, faculty and students. I have not accomplished this task by myself, many friends and family members have supported me and I am proud to say that I have the honor to have shared experiences and life with them.”
The Educational Opportunity Program and Student Academic Services have been supportive of Alicia’s successes and persistence to her degree. She emphasized how important it was “to know that you have somewhere to go when things get shaky and EOP has been available.” Alicia credits Donna Davis as her EOP advisor and as her support system; further, Alicia shared that being able to rely upon Donna “as an advisor to be able to vent and resolve issues with, who really encouraged me to take advantage of this wonderful support system.”
Following Alicia’s graduation in December, she intends to take a long trip to Turkey and Greece as a personal adventure and opportunity to “experience new cultures and people.” Her career goal is to work in mobile technology, publishing or web development in her chosen field of graphic communication and eventually, to complete graduate school.
With the completion of her Bachelor of Science Degree in Graphic Communication, Alicia’s advice to other students who are working toward their degree at Cal Poly is clearly based upon her own experience, “Don’t hold yourself back. In many cases I felt that I was the inhibitor of many opportunities and having confidence in who you are and what you can do is fundamental to success in any field.” Alicia also notes the critical importance of networking with students, staff and faculty, as well as club involvement, which she reiterated “really helps you step up and push yourself to maintain a good work ethic and a valuable experience.”
The Cal Poly Educational Opportunity Program is honored to recognize Alicia Juarez with the Fall 2011 Bright Light award for achieving excellence while overcoming many obstacles.