Mt. SAC VRC Weekly Update
June 29nd-July 3rd
Meet Maura L. Kazden, M.S. Mt. SAC's VA Veterans Success on Campus Counselor
The Vet Success on Campus program (VSOC) locates experienced VA Counselors at schools to assist the growing number of Veterans on college campuses. VSOC Counselors provide resources to help Veterans achieve their academic goals and find meaningful careers. The Counselors collaborate with VA school certifying officials, perform outreach, and communicate with student Veterans. They make sure Veterans’ health, educational, and benefit needs are met, helping them reach their education and career goals.
VA has placed trained counselors at 104 college and university campuses throughout the nation. Mt. SAC is proud to be selected as a VSOC site and welcomes VA staff member Maura Kazden to our Veterans Resource Center Team.
Mrs. Kazden is an amazing resource for information about:
- Chapter 33 (Post 9/11 GI Bill)
- Chapter 31 (Veteran Readiness & Employment)
- Chapter 36 (Educational and Career Counseling)
- VA Disability Compensation
- Enrolling with the VA Hospital
For the summer 2020, Mrs. Kazden is holding weekly Walk-In Virtual Hours via WebEx meetings every Wednesday from 8am-12pm. See "VRC Online-Events This Week" section below for details. She can also be contacted at (310) 235-7778 or via email at maura.kazden@va.gov.
Fall 2020 Schedule of Classes is LIVE
The schedule of classes for more than 250 programs in the Fall semester is now live on the Mt. SAC web site for planning purposes. Registration for classes begins July 8th and the semester will officially begin August 24th. Students should regularly check their Student Portal for more information.
As a reminder, all classes marked as "Transitioned Online" will be processed as residential given the section was planned as on-campus but changed from resident training to online training due to Covid-19.
Any questions, feel free to email us at veterans@mtsac.edu or call us at 909-274-4520.
2020 Grad Spotlight - Veteran Martin Trejo
Below are excerpts from Greg MacDonald's article published on June 28th.
Martin Trejo has always found himself moving from place to place, especially as it relates to his education.
During his youth, he attended three elementary schools, one middle school and three high schools. When Martin finally graduated from Sierra Vista High School in Baldwin Park in 2008, he tried his luck at college at the now-closed Westwood College.
“At the time, I thought it was amazing studying Administration of Justice with an aspiration to become a police officer,” he says. “After a year there, I realized that school just wasn’t my thing.”
He dropped out and enlisted in the United States Army Reserves. Martin went to Basic Training for six months and returned home, thinking he had found his calling with the Armed Forces. But he still felt lost and tried college again, this time at Rio Hondo College “in hopes of finding a spark of interest in something,” he says.
But after two semesters, Martin stopped attending. Shortly thereafter, he was notified he was being deployed in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. His first tour of duty lasted about a year, and Martin volunteered for more time in Afghanistan.
“I was never the same after what I experienced and felt more lost than ever,” he says
“I heard from friends that the Veterans Resource Center at Mt. SAC was really amazing at helping their veterans tackle the hardships and integration into the college life and come out successful,” he says. “So I enrolled in the Fall of 2016.”
Martin found it bumpy that first semester back, failing a math class and withdrawing from a Psychology course.
“I jumped into an ocean without having learned how to swim,” he says. “I needed to restructure my way of learning and approach things in a new way.”
Unfortunately, Martin’s groove online was short-lived. He was involved in a serious car accident in Saudi Arabia and was unable to do his job as a soldier or as a student.
Martin was able to overcome all his injuries, unease and uncertainty to earn an AA-T degree in Sociology. The Veteran will now transfer to Cal Poly Pomona to continue his journey.
Weekly Reminders and Helpful Links/Info
VRC On-Line Events This Week
Certifying Official Walk-In Hours via ZOOM
Join from PC, Mac, Linux, iOS or Android: https://cccconfer.zoom.us/j/96382343072
Meeting ID: 963 8234 3072
Tuesday, Jun 30, 2020, 12:00 PM
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Virtual Drop-in Hours w/VA Vet Success Counselor
When it's time, join the Webex meeting here.
Meeting number (access code): 199 161 9342
Meeting password: anRqCxM*233
Wednesday, Jul 1, 2020, 08:00 AM
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Contact Us
Email: veterans@mtsac.edu
Website: https://www.mtsac.edu/veterans/
Phone: (909) 274-4520