印第安人成功中心 student finds opportunity at CCC

CCC学生科尔·卡特伦在学院找到了自己的步伐, and he's moving onto a four-year university to complete his studies in business.

亚利桑那州的弗拉格斯塔夫. – 商业、会计和经济学是他的爱好.

学位到手，未来在望, 威尼斯安卓版校友, 当前的学生, 会计实习生, and student affairs representative Cole Catron is set to move forward in his higher education journey.

科尔说:“我一直想在我的生命中做点什么. “我想为社会做出重大贡献. Opportunity has always been my biggest motivator for wanting to pursue college.”

最初, he said he believed that his contributions would be in Computer Science, but when he was exposed to Economics in his senior year of high school, he soon began to enjoy the subjects of financial services and banking.

“I found that writing software programs for an organization wouldn’t be as rewarding as managing finances for others and myself,科尔说。. “I would rather help my local underdeveloped communities better allocate their monetary resources to build their own businesses and people from the ground up.”

Cole has been taking CCC courses since his junior year at Coconino High School, where he took advantage of the Dual Enrollment and CAVIAT programs. Both programs offer free or low-cost college credits to students still in high school so they can get a jump start on college. 在他高中的最后一年, Cole said he began to struggle academically due to personal issues. 而不是重修高三, Cole said he decided to continue with CCC after obtaining his high school equivalency diploma that summer to qualify for financial aid.

去年秋天, Cole completed his Associate of Science in General Studies and is now working toward completing his Associate of Business. Following his time at CCC, Cole said he plans on attending NAU’s W.A. 弗兰克商学院学习商业经济学.

 他的长期计划是最终获得博士学位.D. degree in Economics and hopefully one day become an instructor for CCC.

对很多学生来说, finding a “home away from home” is a key factor for their success in higher education. Cole credits two programs in giving him the foundation he needed to find a successful stride in education: The 三人组 Student Support Services Program and the new 印第安人成功中心 (NASC) with its Strengthening Indigenous Student Success program. 三人组 SSS is a governmental grant program that helps students navigate the college experience by serving the unique needs of students who are the first generation in their family to attend college, who are financially challenged to attend college without financial aid, 或者有残疾的人. NASC的, which is made possible with a Native American Non-Tribal Serving Institution grant, is dedicated to improving Native American students’ college completion rates.

“通过我在CCC的个人磨难, I have been able to better connect with other students in similar situations. I can often understand the mental strains that they face when dealing with their families and a lack of support systems,科尔说。. “The Native American Student Success Center has been great at keeping students motivated and has given them the skills to succeed in college.”

Cole said 三人组 and the NASC supported him and helped him to accomplish his goals in his higher education journey. He added that he is also grateful for the opportunity to serve as a Peer Mentor in the SISS program, where he gets to share his experiences and knowledge to help other Native American students find success at CCC. He also has been an Academic Tutor for English and math subjects in CCC’s 辅导 Center at the Lone Tree campus.

He added that he received great advising from staff like former TRiO SSS Director, Jessica Laessig. 他也遇到了体贴的人, 知识渊博的老师, 并在CCC获得了更“个人”的体验. He was so successful that he was awarded two awards: CCC2NAU Student of the Year and Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation (LSAMP) Student of the Year. He also completed and received credit for the 2023 Honors Native American Summer Research Program through the NAU Honors College.

“CCC has given me a chance to take the initiative and experience personal growth,科尔说。, 补充说，他不仅接受了教育, 而且还有就业机会和坚实的支持基础.

He also had the experience and privilege of promoting himself and being a representative for upcoming and current indigenous students.

“I think it’s a great stepping-stone for people wanting to go to a university,科尔说。. “It has made education much more attainable than I thought it would be.”

Learn more about 威尼斯安卓版 and the programs offered by visiting dislkh.sh-fyz.com.

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