Palomar Student Spotlight: Grissel Rosales de Ocampo

When Grissel Rosales de Ocampo started her adult education journey at Vista Adult School, she didn’t know that she would soon be on her path to an associate’s degree. She knew that she wanted to learn, though, and met with a transition advisor at Vista Adult who assessed Grissel’s educational goals and referred her to Palomar College’s Adult Education Counselor, Larry Moyano. Grissel and Larry discussed her options and determined that Grissel would be able to get credit for the classes she was taking at Vista Adult to earn a certificate in bookkeeping at Palomar College. Upon learning about this possibility, Grissel took the next step and became a student at Palomar to continue her studies. Within a very short time, Grissel earned a certificate in bookkeeping and a second certificate in accounting and decided to continue her education even further. Grissel has now almost finished her associates degree with a 3.6 GPA, and she plans on graduating next year. After graduation, she plans on transferring to Cal-State San Marcos. Sharing her experience, Grissel stated that “Larry was tremendously helpful in finding the right path.” She also used the resources of the Tutoring Center to better understand her coursework and get the help she needed in order to excel. As a matter of fact, she wishes she had known earlier that as a student “you are not alone. There is a group of people there to help you with your education.” Grissel has a message for other adult learners: “It takes a village to raise a child but with the student journey, it takes a whole college to raise a student. Sometimes you just have to help yourself and your family. Don’t doubt yourself!”   ​

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