For the second year in a row, a Cuyamaca College student received a prestigious award from the California Community Colleges Board of Governors. Cuyamaca graduate Claudette Clark received the Board of Governors Leadership Award at a ceremony in Santa Clara on April 5. The award honors community college students statewide who have demonstrated a high level of commitment to stu¬dent leadership at their campus.
Clark has plans to work in music therapy for individuals with Alzheimer’s disease, autism, PTSD, and other mental challenges, and was recognized for her efforts to engage and support students who are underrepresented on college campuses. She worked as a peer mentor at Grossmont College to help first-year students succeed, then moved to Cuyamaca College as a member of its outreach department to help underrepresented students.
Clark, who is African American said that Cuyamaca College is a “great place to go to college who want to be welcomed,” in an April 12 press release.
“I didn’t see a lot of people who looked like me, but I felt seen,” said Clark, who returned to college in 2015. While Cuyamaca is smaller than many other community colleges, Clark said its intimacy makes it easier to meet people. And she said she’s never felt as if the campus was lacking anything that she wanted out of her college experience. “I felt as if it meant something to the school to have me there,”
Cuyamaca College President Jessica Robinson said Clark had “unwavering commitment to social justice.”
“Serving her community is thematic in her work at the college,” stated Robinson. “Ms. Clark has organized and participated in many college and community-based initiatives with a social justice focus, and she takes steps to remove barriers for students.” Clark has worked hard to increase access for all students, while inspiring others “to pursue a college education by sharing her journey and encouraging students to focus on their own personal ‘why’ as they pursue their educational goals.”
Clark plans to transfer to a four-year university and earn a bachelor’s degree in African American Studies before pursuing a career in music therapy. Her focus, she said, will be to help people who often do not receive the mental health care they need, including African American individuals who may be reluctant to seek care, or do not have it readily available to them.
At Cuyamaca, Clark says she will continue her work to help make students feel welcome on campus, and fully realize their college experience. She said her message is a simple and powerful one.
“Come and find your space and take advantage of the accessibility and the tools our college is offering you,” she said. “Move forward doing the best you can. Give back and move forward.”
