Nation's top community college students honored
Patrick Fritz, a Navy veteran and single father of three, didn’t see community college as just a low-cost college option, he thought it might help make sense of a bigger mystery.
“As a first generation student, I did not understand the college application, financial aid, or overall educational processes,” he wrote on his application for the All-USA Community College Academic Team. “By choosing to attend a community college instead of a larger institution, I received the individual attention and guidance I required to enable me to succeed.”
Fritz managed his family and studies while working two jobs and two volunteer gigs: one at his local library and a second at a non-profit community theater company that works with veterans suffering from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder.
As one of 20 students honored with a place on the 2016 All-USA Community College Academic Team that was announced today, Fritz demonstrated self-belief and determination, coupled with a desire to give back to his community. Those traits define all of this year’s honorees, each of whom receive a $5,000 scholarship from the Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society (PTK).
The honor is designed to recognize two-year college students from across the USA who display an outstanding combination of academic achievement and community service.
Those traits describe Shahriar “Shawn” Zamani pretty well.
Studying to be a Oncology Pharmacist at Hillsborough Community College in Florida, Zamani makes time to volunteer in the pharmacy of a local hospital, as well as offering tax consultation to those in need through the Volunteer Income Tax Assistant program.
Another team member, Sameerah Wahab, carries at 3.8 GPA at Brookdale Community College, New Jersey and is working with Students for Global Citizenship on two projects: to raise money for the building of a water well in Rwanda, and to assist those affected by the European Refugee Crisis.
Fritz seemed to sum up the spirit of the 2016 team best with a simple statement of purpose: “I was raised by my single, teenage mother who abandoned her dreams to ensure mine could become a reality.”
Here's the complete 2016 All-USA Community College Academic Team:
- Amie Bernstein, Suffolk County Community College-Ammerman Campus, New York
- Alex Martinez Figueroa, Pima Community College-Desert Vista Campus, Arizona
- Elisandra Fini, Suffolk County Community College-Michael J. Grant Campus, New York
- Patrick Fritz, Piedmont Virginia Community College-Charlottesville Campus, Virginia
- Miguel Angel Gaspar Marquez, Oregon Coast Community College-Newport Campus, Oregon
- Erin Jane Georgia, Jefferson State Community College-Birmingham Campus, Alabama
- Jesse Kane, Arizona Western College-Yuma Campus, Arizona
- Cecilia Lee, Arapahoe Community College-Littleton Campus, Colorado
- Ya Xing Li, Lone Star College-Fairbanks Center/Cyfair, Texas
- Issanna Loughman, San Diego City College-San Diego Campus, California
- Eduardo Lujan Olivas, Pima Community College-East Campus, Arizona
- Dylan Nikkel, Des Moines Area Community College-Newton Campus, Iowa
- Brody P. O'Connor, Hudson Valley Community College- Main Campus, New York
- Maria Alejandra Ortiz, Miami Dade College-InterAmerican Campus, Florida
- Joshua Pickering, Santa Fe College-Gainesville Campus, Florida
- Natalie Beth Seales, Jones County Junior College-Main Campus, Mississippi
- Alexis Slade, Des Moines Area Community College-Career Academy/Hunziker Center, Iowa
- Elizabeth Taylor, Grayson College-Denison Campus, Texas
- Sameerah Wahab, Brookdale Community College-Lincroft Campus, New Jersey
- Shawn Zamani, Hillsborough Community College-Tampa Campus, Florida