Alondra Diaz Merino - Summer 2022

Alondra Diaz Merino (she/her/hers) first started her academic journey at Grays Harbor College through Running Start. She started her junior year of high school and was excited to see what the future held for her. She received her A.A.S. in June of 2022. She liked the experience she had during the program. She mentioned how thankful she was for Paul Turner and Lori Christmas. “They both helped me throughout the program and made it easy to schedule courses. It was a very enjoyable moment for me. They made sure the process was clear and that I remained on track with graduation.” Alondra knew that she wanted to remain in Pacific County, so she decided to continue her education through Grays Harbor College. Her former English teacher from Raymond High School is now the Director of TRIO Educational Opportunity Centers at Grays Harbor College. “I remembered when my former English teacher, Ashley Bowie Gallegos, came to Raymond High School to give a presentation on TRIO EOC. This is how I first became familiar with the program.” Alondra mentioned how TRIO EOC helped with the transitional process and walked her through the CNA program requirements. She was later accepted into the program and was provided with financial assistance to complete the program. “TRIO EOC guided me on my next step towards nursing. I was introduced to new resources and opportunities that I did not know were possible or attainable.” She decided to continue her college career at Grays Harbor College because the college is community-based and the staff she had interacted with was helpful. “I felt a sense of belonging and the college is close to home.” Alondra is enrolled in Pre-Nursing courses at Grays Harbor College for the fall quarter. She has applied for her CNA state tests and will be testing soon. Alondra completed the CNA program this summer and mentioned that it provided her with insight on which field of expertise she would like to pursue. “After gaining this experience, I know that I would like to work at a nursing home.” She would like to transfer to a four-year college once she has completed her nursing degree. Alondra would advise future students to not be afraid to ask for help. “When I first started at GHC, I was afraid to ask for help. When I noticed that there was no way around it, I began to ask for assistance. I then received an immense amount of assistance and it made my journey at GHC a lot easier.”