Year 2: End of the Year Reflection

Throughout my high school years, I’ve been in OCAPICA since my freshman year at Magnolia. But on a serious note, OCAPICA has always helped me with my homework & gave me a place of solitude to study when it wasn’t given at home. What I always loved about OCAPICA was that I could go absent from the club for 3 wks and appear out of no where & the staff would still treat me the same & welcome me with open arms. I had a great experience with OCAPICA at Magnolia HS as well with great memories. Through OCAPICA, I was even blessed to be granted with a scholarship in which I am very thankful for. Although I didn’t attend to every workshop, when I did, I enjoyed seeing the familiar faces and classmates from HS, it always brought back memories of how things used to be. Even though I didn’t even talk to some of you, I still knew who you were & that was enough. Thank you Kassie & Jody for your hard work in providing us your life lessons & awkward ice breakers for every workshop, they were very helpful & insightful. I would like to thank Ashley & Jody, again, for pushing me to take the scholarship seriously, because if it weren’t for them, I wouldn’t be blessed with the scholarship money the program has funded for me with. Thank you to all the OCAPICA program staff/workers, although we don’t see the commitment you guys set forth to us students, your work is a testimony in itself because this program has grown since it first began, in 2009. (If I’m correct). Thank you can’t ever be enough. I won’t forget the new friendships made within the two years in the OCAPICA scholarship program and I wish nothing but the best to my fellow peers, the marathon only continues, stay hungry. Miracle, 2013 Scholar

Experiences Never Fade

Hello everyone! My name is Viridiana Prado, and I am currently a psychology major attending California State University, Long Beach.

I gained a great amount of knowledge while I was in the OCAPICA scholars program; knowledge about networking, different career paths, internships, and about utilizing resources that will give me the tools to help us succeed. Not only did I learn a great deal from Kassie and Jody, I learned a great deal from my fellow scholars. They taught me lessons about perseverance and that I am not alone; there are other students out there struggling to fill up that last page for that one essay and studying all night, and sharing this experience with them was an honor.

The scholars program encouraged and motivated me to be a part of clubs such as the Psychology Student Association, Rotaract Club, and even the Anime Club. The program also inspired me to apply for a volunteer opportunity at a place called Ability First, where I work with children and adults who have disabilities.

I challenge students to get out of their comfort zones, because they never know what kind of awesome and amazing experiences and opportunities they may stumble upon.

Viridiana, 2013 Scholar 

College Life

Being an OCAPICA Scholar has been a a great experience. I started off my first year as an “away” student, then second year I had the opportunity to come to the meetings, and learn alongside the other scholars. This program has given more than just financial support, it gave me the opportunity to learn and grow as a student. OCAPICA has helped me through my first two years of college, through the workshops and the support that it has given me the past two years. I am forever thankful to have been part of this program.

I currently am involved in the behavioral science club at my school, Concordia Cares a community service based club, and a member of Girl Scouts for fifteen years. I am an office assistant at my school’s Registrar’s office, and I also work off campus in a restaurant.

My advice to new scholars is to surround yourself with people who care about you and your success, people who want you to achieve something great. These are the people that will give you more opportunities to grow.

Alysha, 2013 scholar