The Spring 2024 San Jacinto College Commencement Ceremony is Tuesday, May 14, 2024, at 7 p.m. at NRG Stadium, NRG Parkway, Houston, TX 77054. Here’s a few of the graduates that will be in attendance.

“My favorite professor at San Jac was my Anatomy 1 professor, Dr Said. San Jacinto professors have taught me the basic skills that are needed and will help me as I continue my education,” says Waller.
“One of the most valuable lessons I learned from Public Speaking, I learned how to properly speak in front of an audience that will judge what I am saying, and I learned what I need for the audience to continue engaging in what I say,” Waller shared.
Waller plans on continuing her education at Texas State University during the fall semester of 2024, and is working towards her bachelor’s degree.
“My advice to future graduates is to attend the tutorials that San Jacinto offers to students, they will help you understand what you are required to learn in your classes,” says Waller.

“I will always remember my US history 1 and 2 professor Dawn Shedd. I had some rough courses the first semester when I took honors US history 1, but every time I went into her class, I felt like everything would be okay. Throughout both semesters, her class helped me get through the rest and earn my degree not only because of the environment but what I learned from her. Shedd took a different approach in lessons. Her work was more thought provoking and taught me that sometimes not everything has to be exactly perfect as long as the idea or message is there. This is something very important both in history classes and in everyday life,” says Nguyen.
From this class Nguyen learned how important it is to have different perspectives not only in history, and along with this being her favorite class also she learned valuable lessons she may apply to anything since she describes herself as an over achiever.
“Instead of focusing on the details like the dates of battles in history, it’s much more important to be able to analyze the parties who were engaged and their perspectives as well as the lesson learned from it. To me this is something that I think should be the approached almost everywhere. Once you understand the concept you can focus on the details,” says Nguyen.
Nguyen will be attending Texas A&M next fall and she will apply this lesson in her marine biology career and beyond.
“My advice to those other students is to spend a lot of time studying concepts rather than the details of a problem because numbers in math change, the days also change, but history and ideas repeat themselves as do the basic set ups of math or economics problems,” shares Nguyen.

“My favorite course at San Jac was my biology 1 and 2 with professor David Lang. One of the most important lesson I learned here was to not procrastinate, and working on assignments or homework as fast as possible before due dates. It helped me learn how to find balance between my life and assignments,” says Gilmore.
Gilmore plans on continuing her education at Southwest University at El Paso next fall semester, and will be majoring in biology.
“Although my mom and professors played a big part in helping me get my degree, my advice to future graduates is to find time for yourself outside of school, it is very important to focus on you and your mental health along with your studies,” says Gilmore.

Huynh favorite course is Philosophy 1301, because of how the professor goes out of his way to make sure his students understand the material in his class, and a lesson he will always remember is to always move at your own pace; never feel the
need to compare your path to success to other students. 

Huynh will be attending Texas Southern University to pursue Aviation

Huynh says his family and friends push him to be the best he can possibly be, and the advice he would give to a future graduate is to never give up. 

Camacho's favorite professor is when he took a Physics course, due to the way the professor made it easy to learn. 
Camacho plans to finish a Bachelor's degree at University of Houston Clearlake. What helped him earn his degree
was the inspiration some professors sparked in him. 

Camacho's advice to future graduates is to not believe something is easy, just because it looks easy, and do your work on time.

Salomon Sosa is a dual credit student from South Houston High School.

Pre-Calculus was Sosa's favorite course because it was taught by his favorite professor, Professor Cooper.

Sosa's favorite SJC experience was creating new friends and bonds over similarities they had in class. A lesson he will remember after graduation was that you always need to check your emails, and nothing ever should be turned in late. 

"The ECHS (Early College) program and personal tutors provided by the high school helped me earn my degree. Advice I would give is to never procrastinate because it will catch up with you," says Sosa.

“My favorite course was probably my Programming Fundamentals 1 course, I really liked my professor, that made it exponentially better too. It was also a lot of fun just trying to figure out programming, figuring out the different languages, Java, Python, C++. It’s kind of like solving a puzzle, and I always thought that was really interesting,” says Boriack.
With the knowledge of programming he gained in San Jacinto college, Boriack plans to go to University of Houston Clear Lake to finish his degree to become a computer software engineer.
The help provided by his calculus professor, Wael Abushammala, and his programming professor, Norman Liebling, greatly aided in Boriack’s journey to graduation.
“Just keep up with the work. I mean, it all seems like a lot in the beginning, but once you slowly chip away at it, it makes it worthwhile in the end,” say Boriack.

Penida plans to transfer to Texas A&M University and major in Civil Engineering. Pineda's favorite class at San Jacinto was General Chemistry 2 with Doctor Nono, as he would check up on his students daily to make sure everyone was doing good.

“I learned that you shouldn’t procrastinate, so I would say that has been my lesson through here, because procrastinating really makes you fall behind, and like, if you don’t procrastinate, you’ll know that you’re doing everything right and that you’ll be less stressed if you don’t procrastinate,” says Penida.

Penida credits her older sister for assisting her journey throughout San Jacinto, as her sister also attended San Jacinto College and is a current alumni. This helped Penida when it was her time to attend college.

“I would say just keep pushing through. It’s always worth it in the end, even though you have hard times, but everyone’s going through the same stuff. So just always know that there’s always people to reach out to,” says Pineda.

Dinh’s favorite course while studying at San Jacinto was Biology 2 with Professor Igor Yakushkin.

Dinh plans to attend the University of Houston, where she will continue her education to later go into medicine.
“My favorite San Jac experience would be meeting at the Student Center, as well as the events done at San Jac,” says Dinh.
As Dinh is part of the early-college high school program, the help provided to her from her counselor and dean allowed Dinh to further her education to one day be able to work in the medicinal field.
“For future graduates I would say to manage your time wisely because you can easily procrastinate,” says Dinh.

Pacheco’s favorite courses were her health science classes. 
Pacheco will be continuing her education at Lamar University where she will major in Nursing. Pacheco stayed motivated to earn her degree with the help of her friends and family, and when times got tough, she motivated herself.
“Even in the darkest times, there’s hope, you just have to look for it,” says Pacheco.

Ferrel’s favorite course was Business Principles. San Jac has taught Ferrell time management skills and “the ability to take charge and successfully accomplish my goals or the task at hand," says Ferrell. 

Ferrell hopes to open her own business in the future. Ferrell has been accepted into the Disney College Program internship for the fall semester. Afterward, she plans on attending the University of Houston to get her bachelor’s degree in Entrepreneurship.
Ferrell believes that hard work, determination, and studying for her courses helped her earn her degree.
“The hardest part is getting started. Sometimes it may seem overwhelming, especially at the start of the semester, but stay focused and prioritize your task, because I promise its worth the effort,” says Ferrell.

The lesson Dixon learned while studying at San Jac was that not everything has to be perfect. “It has
never been about perfection. It has always been about being passionate and honest. It’s all about being true to
yourself,” says Dixon.
Dixon is going into Music Education for her career and will be attending Texas Christian University.
Dixon credits her peers and teachers as the people who have helped her earn her degree.
"Always be ahead on your schoolwork. It will save you from burnout and stress later down the line. And use the resources around
you – never be afraid to ask questions,” advises Dixon.

San Jac has taught Medina that she should always push through and never give up no matter how tough it may seem.
Medina is going into the Paramedic field and will be a combat medic in the military.
Medina will continue her education while in the military and will work to receive her bachelor’s degree.
Medina believes that her hard work and the support from others helped her earn her degree. Her friends' support of her
career choice motivated her further.
“Never give up. Embrace the 'sucky stuff', it’s only temporary and the reward will be well worth it,” says Medina.

Johnstone learned that your environment plays a factor in productivity and will remember this long after graduating from SJC.

Kenneth hopes to work as a Computer Technician. He believes that studying in the library was the biggest game changer that helped him learn the most.

"Write deadlines in your calendar and schedule time to work on homework weekly,” advises Johnstone.

A lesson Null holds closely as a graduate is, there is a lot of incentive on your environment that can help you gain responsibility for your own life. Hunter is moving onto nursing school, pursuing a career as a Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetists.

Null believes keeping note of tasks to do, whether it’s school or work, is super important to stay balanced and get things done. 

Null's advice to future graduates is to “take time for yourself. Don’t let academic stress bog you down. Hit the gym, go for a walk, or simply take a nap. Just don’t forget about yourself” 

Vazques dreams to become a Criminal Psychologist when after earning her bachelor's at Sam Houston State University. “Understanding the psychological parts of a criminal is something that fascinates me a lot, and the reason for that is because growing up I used to watch a lot of documentary about serial killers and I got so fascinated with those documentaries that I
am inspired to dig deep into the minds of criminals,” says Vazques.

"Professor Hixenbaugh is a very good professor when I attended his class. His dedication in teaching his students about Mexican American Humanities is something that I found very fascinating while attending his class, and because of his class I am more educated in the Mexican American side of Humanities,” says Vazques.

“The ability to manage time well is something that is very crucial to me and the reason for that is because I work full-time at H-E-B and enjoy reading a lot of books. Without time management, I would not be able to finish my homework, put in the work to pay for college, and have time to read my books,” says Vazques.

“The biggest advice I can give to the upcoming freshman’s is, if you really want something and you know how to get it, than work hard and dedicate yourself because with enough work you will be rewarded for what you so desire,” says Vazques.

Garcia's favorite experience at SJC was meeting new people and socializing. A lesson she learned was to always ask for help whenever she needed it. Garcia believes it is better to understand, rather than stay in the dark. Post graduation, she will make her way into University of Houston Clear Lake, pursing education! 

Garcia is grateful for the unwavering support she has received from friends and family throughout her journey.

"Stay positive in the face of challenges. Tough times happen, but everything will fall into place,” says Garcia.

Rosales favorite course throughout college is Composition II with his favorite professor, Aaron Love.

"Going to professor Love Composition II class was one of my best experiences throughout college, the reason for that is because he taught us a lot about Gen Z and what the past generations were like,” says Rosales.

“He also showed us how we Gen Z can be here to do better for the community in these upcoming years,” says Rosales.

Rosales also stated that the one lesson he learned throughout his college career is the value of time management and how to use it daily.

“Time management is very important when it comes to college, I work part time in construction with my father, I also love to have time to go to the gym for myself. In order for me to work, go to the gym, and go to school I need to manage my time, and I feel like college really did teach me that," says Rosales.

“An advice that I can give to the following freshman is to be yourself and to not let simple things bother you. You only live once so go ahead, and take those risks you’ve been wanting to take since the beginning,” says Rosales.

Pineda will attend University of Houston to earn a bachelor's degree in media production, with hopes to work in
the journalism sector.

“Connecting with people is something that I find very fascinating, the fact that I can study communication so it can give me the opportunity to meet new faces is a dream come true of mine,” says Pineda.

“Theatre class was definitely my favorite subject during my time in San Jacinto and the reason for that is because I got the opportunity to connect with other people that are not afraid to put themselves out there, and I believe that surrounding myself with likeminded people will help me build good connections for the future or even new friendships,” says Pineda.

“The best advice that I can give is to not be afraid to speak up, while in high school I was always afraid to share my thoughts and opinions on certain things but then I came to realize that it is very important to put your thoughts out there because they might change someone’s life or they might even be influential in some other way,” says Pineda. 

Sweet hopes to get into an editor/writer job with a publication company or a writer/reporter job with a news organization.  Sweet is going to remember that getting ahead of your workload will always be a priority. Sweet is grateful for his mom and his family for helping him through his time at San Jac.

"Do the work when it arrives, not when it is due,” says Sweet.

Perez’s favorite course while attending San Jac was the blood banking class, where he learned to always double-check your work, as any mishap could get someone killed.

Perez plans on becoming a Medical Lab Scientist.

"Do not procrastinate, don’t ever give up, and drink a second pot of coffee and get right back to it,” says Perez.

Arevalo’s guiding lesson is “to pursue your dreams even if it takes longer than planned.” She is currently a Nursing student and wishes to become a Nurse after graduation.

Arevalo’s mother helped to support her and keep her steady as she earned her degree, and it is important “ to keep on going even when you feel like giving up," says Arevalo.

Molina loved so many of her SJC courses that it’s hard for her to choose just one. The primary lesson that she learned from her time at San Jac South was to “be thorough in whatever you do,” says Molina.
“I'm transferring over to University of Houston Clear Lake, and I start classes this upcoming summer semester. I'm working towards getting my bachelor's in literature and eventually a master's in library science. I hope to be an author, librarian, and potentially an editor," says Molina. 

"The veteran center at San Jac South is one of the primary reasons why I've made it this far; I genuinely couldn't have done it without them,” says Molina.
Molina's advice to future graduates is that you should never be afraid to reach out to an advisor, always double-check that the classes that you take are the ones that you need and that they will count towards your degree, and to not overwork yourself.

Salinas' favorite classes were his History 1301 and 1302 classes. 
Even though his history classes were his favorites, an important lesson stuck to him from his English class.

“A lesson I will always remember is my online English classes because the professors I had presented their materials well,” says Salinas.
Salinas plans to take a break after graduation, and let any possible opportunities come to him. 
“I would recommend future graduates to manage their time wisely, and not to procrastinate. It’s really easy to get behind on work and find yourself in a difficult situation, so ensuring you’re on top of your work is key,” says Salinas.

“A lesson that I’d learned this year was I learned how to balance my work, and how to schedule
everything better,” says Garza.

Garza believes that learning how to manage his schedule really helped him in working towards his classes, especially his favorite and most difficult one, pre-calculus. 
Garza plans on finding work as a mechanical engineer soon as possible.
“Advice I would offer to future graduates is to take it one day at a time. The future can seem really scary or far away, so it’s best to focus on what you can control now,” says Garza.

“Do what you love; not what others tell you to do,” says Martin. 
Martin plans on getting his PhD in philosophy and becoming film director and film critic.
“Support from my family and friends helped me through school, because without them, I wouldn’t be here,” says Martin.
Martin’s advice to future graduates is to do well on your assignments, so that if you get a bad grade on an exam, it won’t hurt your grade as much.