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KSOE Alumni Spotlight: Joanna Arriaga
Name, Grad Year, Grade you teach
Joanna Arriaga, Class of 2025. I teach Transitional Kindergarten.
What inspired you to pursue a career in teaching?
As the eldest of four girls, I believe my sisters inspired my love and passion for working with children. I knew I wanted to be an educator when I started working at the Child Study Center at my community college (Los Medanos College). I would definitely say it was one of the factors that shaped the kind of educator and person I am today. That passion continued to grow and was further supported when I made my way to Saint Mary's College of California.
What drew you to Saint Mary's College of California and the Justice, Community & Leadership MSTE program?
Prior to attending SMC, the JCL teacher pathway was always well spoken of. The ability to graduate simultaneously with both a bachelor's degree and a teaching credential intrigued me. Before becoming an SMC student, I was a community college student. The small class sizes and the relationships I built with both my classmates and professors were really important to me, especially since the first half of my college education was online due to the pandemic.
Besides teaching, what have you been up to since graduating from the program?
Since graduating, I have been finding ways to ground myself both professionally and personally. I'm making time for new and old hobbies, taking time for myself, and trying to figure out my next steps in obtaining my master's degree.
In what ways did your experience in the JCL program prepare you for the work you’re doing today?
The JCL program pushed and challenged me in ways I had yet discovered. My experience in the JCL program prepared me for my current work by allowing me to not only think more critically of the work I put into myself as an educator but the world around me as well. Even before arriving at Saint Mary's, I believed that meaningful learning happens when we embrace students' interests, questions and curiosities. My time in the program engaging with Paulo Freire's work, for example, only deepened that belief. With Professors like Dr. Michael Viola, I was challenged to view teaching not simply as delivering knowledge but as creating spaces for collaboration, exploration and deep reflection! Professors didn't just tell us, "This is how it should be or look"; instead, they demonstrated it in practice every time I attended my classes. The JCL program strengthened my commitment and passion for creating learning spaces where students feel empowered to question, wonder, and be the drivers of their own learning. Much of my knowledge and experience from the JCL program also applies to my daily/personal life. I am very thankful for all of the professors that I had the opportunity to learn from during my time at SMC and in the JCL program, they all inspired me in many ways.
What advice, encouragement, or wisdom would you offer to current or future JCL graduate students as they prepare to lead in classrooms and communities?
My advice to JCL students is to continue pushing yourself out of your comfort zone, because only then can you continue to grow and flourish into the person you want to be. Another thing to mention is that although the Facilitations, research memos, and capstone assignments were nerve-wracking and overwhelming, they were the most transformative assignments that I ever completed. Ask professors, peers and other on campus resources for help. I promise that the light at the end of the tunnel is so rewarding.