Holly Guzman
Finding Her Way Back: How Ventura Community College Gave Holly Guzman Room to Grow
Holly Guzman had an unusual trajectory. She graduated from Foothill Technology High School in 2014, and took a gap year to travel internationally, and try to balance her internal and external worlds. Upon returning, Ventura Community College offered her the chance to work full time, take evening classes toward her Associate’s, and still maintain a social life. She wasn’t convinced of what she wanted to do occupationally, and ultimately landed on studying Communications and Economics.
She transferred to UC Davis with a 3.88 GPA. This was made easier by VC’s counselors, who were paramount in helping her access whatever it was she needed. She studied Community and Regional Development, a new program in the Human Ecology Department that combined Economics, Human Resources, Law, and Education. She loved being able to choose her own courses that aligned with her interests, and graduated Magna Cum Laude in 2021, amidst COVID 19.
She remained in Northern California for the next few years, working in different capacities that both aligned and didn’t align with her degree. Eventually, she was struck with the desire to work in a field altogether different from what she originally studied after her volunteer work with the City of Sacramento. She moved back to Ventura in 2023.
Ventura Community College saved the day once again, allowing her the ease of picking up classes here and there as she applied to graduate schools for Clinical Psychology. She is enrolled in USC’s graduate program, starting this summer, and works for a local Group Therapy Office in the meantime. She is exceedingly grateful for the flexible opportunities Ventura Community College had to offer her in the transitional periods of her life, and couldn’t be happier to be an alumna!
Are you interested in sharing your VC story and connecting with fellow alums? Contact Grace Falzone-Miller, Alumni Relations Specialist at gfalzonemiller@vcccd.edu or sign up below:
