Colorado Mountain College graduates look to the future

BEAVER CREEK — For the college students graduating from Colorado Mountain College’s Vail Valley Campus on Friday night, the graduation ceremony marked just the starting. Potentially, it marked the beginning of new careers, of an educational journey, of a new adventure or merely of a new life chapter — but all graduates were starting with a new degree or certification from the community faculty.

“To the graduates we are celebrating these days, we know you embarked on your schooling journey with very little concept of the troubles that lay forward. I’m certain there ended up quite a few situations when you questioned by yourself, ‘Can I do this? Will I get there?’ Perfectly we are now below to celebrate with you simply because you did,” explained Marc Brennan, vice president and dean of Colorado Mountain College’s Vail Valley Campus, at Friday’s graduation.

“It is now time to acquire both the difficulties you encountered alongside the way and the triumph of your journey and change it into your up coming success tale, for the reason that that chapter is just starting to unfold,” Brennan ongoing.

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The Course of 2022

Colorado Mountain College’s Vail Valley campus returned to the Vilar Undertaking Arts Center in Beaver Creek on Friday evening for its 2022 commencement ceremony. The campus celebrated above 300 graduates, completing a myriad of certificates as nicely as bachelors and associates degrees. Not all 300 graduates walked at the ceremony.

Of these, 100 had been community superior university students that took advantage of the concurrent enrollment classes in between the faculty and Eagle County Faculty District. Fourteen of these pupils participated in the commencement ceremony.

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Brennan, in addressing the group at the start off of the ceremony, emphasised the diversity and variety of the 2022 class of graduates.

“At the Vail Valley Campus, the college students replicate the community we stay in: We have many initial-generation learners who are working to make a legacy for their siblings and their communities we have several learners who are operating two or 3 positions to aid on their own and their family members whilst they complete their diploma,” he mentioned. “What I see when I look at our learners are people who are devoted, tricky-working and determined to realize success.”

The group of graduates on Friday absolutely reflected the group. Among them ended up anyone from significant school college students which includes Victoria Aragon, who recently gained the Boettcher Scholarship, early childhood workforce trying to find certification, potential academics, long term cafe proprietors and even Eagle County Sheriff James van Beek.

Van Beek graduated on Friday with a Bachelor of Applied Science in Leadership and Management from the campus. Addressing the crowd — as all graduates who walked had been invited to do — van Beek explained that adhering to his high school graduation 39 a long time back, he’s experienced a very long journey of figuring out what he desired to do when he grew up.

“I’ve been continually heading to college, with a most important emphasis on specialized educational facilities. (I was skilled in car mechanics and then helicopters in advance of likely into regulation enforcement.) I’d gotten my degree in felony justice, but I wanted to problem myself and grow my expertise and practical experience that didn’t just emphasis on criminal justice but lent to my present-day place,” Van Beek explained in a Thursday job interview with the Vail Every day. “CMC available exactly what I was seeking for as far as diploma plans staff that was out there to assist in any way, the flexibility in class schedules, superb instructors and curriculum, and it was near to residence.”

Whilst van Beek’s long run just after graduation might be marginally different than that of some his fellow graduates — particularly continuing his present role, and managing for re-election in November — he did impart some phrases of wisdom to his classmates on Friday.

“Because I’m in all probability the oldest one in the team below, a person of the classes I’m heading to give you is: Don’t forget as you go out into the globe, you want to do the job to live, you do not want to dwell to do the job,” he stated.

Also amongst the graduates was Diana Loera, who gained a bachelor’s degree in elementary schooling with two endorsements: culturally and linguistically numerous education and learning (and bilingual schooling professional). Loera has presently been employed to instruct at Edwards Elementary in the tumble. For her, she’s enthusiastic for the long run and shaping the minds of her long term learners.

“CMC has been an extraordinary assistance during my pathway getting my diploma,” Loera explained. “CMC furnished me with the academic, emotional and financial help I desired to realize my aspiration of turning into a bilingual and multicultural educator.”

Also in the class was Julissa Olivares, a initially-technology university student that gained a Bachelor of Science in Business enterprise Administration. Olivares been given a scholarship from TRIO — a federally funded application, exclusively for very first-generation students — to go to the university. With her diploma, she ideas to increase economical literacy in the regional community as a monetary advisor.

Other graduates walked across the stage celebrating new futures that utilize their degrees, be it in nursing, culinary administration, emergency drugs, biology, details engineering, legal justice and additional.

“(CMC is) a magical position and a lot of people really do not notice how magnificent it is and staying a student is and how substantially your assistance of us genuinely receives us right here, so thank you so considerably,” explained Angela Gould, choking again tears as she walked throughout the stage to acquire her Bachelor of Utilized Science in Management and Management.

Just one graduate, Theley Sherpa, who gained each an associate’s diploma in company and a bachelor’s in business administration, likened his Colorado Mountain Higher education journey to a common Eagle County practical experience.

“This journey was like studying how to ski moguls, it was tough and I knew it was going to harm me, but it was so a lot entertaining and there was a large amount of contentment when I crossed the end line,” Sherpa mentioned.

For what the long run holds

No matter what the upcoming retains for the graduates as the exit Colorado Mountain School — with the turn of a tassel — is in the long run up to them. Imparting some phrases of knowledge on to the graduates, commencement speaker Melina Valsecia inspired the pupils to go ahead with resilience, curiosity, perseverance and joy.

“This is a journey, this is a large accomplishment you need to be happy, your dad and mom must be very pleased,” Valsecia stated. “So as my tears go down, I hope you come to feel the similar. This is the commencing of a new everyday living, this is the beginning of you acquiring to choose what is up coming.”

Valsecia herself moved to Eagle County in 2007 from South America. Born and raised in the countryside of Argentina, Valsecia obtained an undergraduate diploma in nutrition in Paraguay and a master’s diploma in community overall health and wellness education.

Originally, when Valsecia came to Eagle County, she had just one intention: to get to the base of the mountain in 1 year, one thing she was capable to obtain in mere times. And at the time she reached her objective, she was capable to just appreciate the encounter of skiing, she mentioned when addressing the graduates on Friday.

“Don’t at any time fail to remember to have joy in what ever you do. Adhere to your gut, comply with your instinct, but you have to be delighted on the way, you have to feel pleasure,” she claimed. “If it doesn’t make you satisfied — start discovering. Embrace it, and I hope you understand, it will acquire you to other locations.”

Now, Valsecia serves as the govt director of the Eagle Valley Community Basis, serving as an advocate for the wellness and very well-getting of local family members and young children. Her journey, she mentioned, was one driven by curiosity and a enthusiasm to master, in spite of any troubles or boundaries she faced together the way.

“I think I bought to do every thing I did in these 40 a long time since I did not prevent asking concerns,” she claimed. “What is it that can make you curious? That is the challenge you have from now on. But I would embrace this mainly because curiosity is heading to get you areas, it’s heading to make you meet up with people, it is heading to make your occupation develop.”

Reporter Ali Longwell can be arrived at at [email protected].