In the summer of 2022, Jasmine Sanchez made a bold decision. She would give college "one more chance."
Up until then, Jasmine had struggled at college. Not because the courses were too difficult or she lacked the skills. Instead, it was the transportation issues and on-campus resources that made college far too difficult to maintain.
At that time, Jasmine was taking classes at a college in Los Angeles and had to wake up at 5:30am just to make it in time for the city’s Paratransit transportation service, which often took up to three hours before dropping Jasmine off on campus. Then she would have to do the whole thing over again, making it home around 8:00pm to do her homework and get to bed.
“I found myself crying daily,” explained Jasmine. “I would spend hours every day traveling to and from school. And on top of that I was getting conflicting information from my counselors when I was on campus.”
That’s when her boyfriend, Erik Garcia, urged her to consider a different option. He was already a student at MiraCosta College at the time and told Jasmine about the resources that the school provides, including an Uber Discount Program that helps students get to and from school on their own.
“As a student dealing with blindness, just hearing about that was a gamechanger,” shared Jasmine. “The thought of not having to sit in traffic most of the day was incredible. It meant I could focus on school and take more control over my schedule.”
It wasn’t an easy decision though. MiraCosta College was still hours away from her hometown in Los Angeles and enrolling meant that she would have to leave her family behind, including her little brother with whom she shares a special bond.
“Leaving home for community college was unheard of,” recalled Jasmine. Plus, as a blind female, it was extra scary to go to a new place where I didn’t have a community of family and friends to lean on. I was unsure what it would be like.”
Despite her fears, Jasmine made the move, understanding it was necessary for her growth.
Shared Jasmine, "I had to tell myself, you need to do this for yourself and for your little brother. Especially if you want to show him that anything is possible.'"
At MiraCosta College, Jasmine found the support she needed through the Student Accessibility Services (SAS) office. She particularly credits Aaron Holmes and the SAS team for helping her develop confidence and advocate for herself.
"They're so helpful, they quickly became my community,” Jasmine explained. “At my previous school, I felt lost. But at MiraCosta College everyone takes the time to get to know you as a student and as a person so they can find every way possible to support you.”
Continued Jasmine, “The Student Accessibility Services team treats every single person with genuine care. They are our biggest advocates and our success is their success.”
One example of this support came after Jasmine found herself lost on campus during a rainy day when she was having particularly bad vision difficulties. She called her boyfriend who happened to be in the SAS office at the time. Immediately, the SAS team sprang into action and safely tracked down Jasmine on campus. But it wasn’t just that moment that proved to Jasmine she was in the right place. In the days and weeks that followed, the SAS team made it their mission to make sure this would never happen again to Jasmine or any other students facing accessibility issues. They went to the school’s Board and advocated for the adoption of Aira, a mobile app that provides real-time visual assistance for navigation, reading, and other visual tasks.
"I had never had anyone advocate for me like the way that Aaron and the SAS team did," she said.
The support goes far beyond the practical elements too. As Jasmine describes, MiraCosta College has helped her grow as a person and as an artist.
When Jasmine began losing her sight years ago, she thought that she would have to give up her biggest passion in life – dance. But at MiraCosta College, she started to realize there was still a pathway to continue living her dream. In one particular English class, Jasmine’s professor pushed the class to explore trauma through storytelling, concepts that resonated with Jasmine’s personal journey and passion for creative arts.
"I think in that class I really got to understand more of who I was, who I am, and who I want to be,” said Jasmine. “I started to think about how I could still have a successful career in dance and even use that to help others like me.”
Initially uncertain about her academic path, Jamine has now declared dance as her major. She plans to graduate in May, becoming the first in her family to do so, and then pursue a bachelor's degree in dance followed by graduate studies in movement therapy.
Beamed Jasmine, "I want to work with adolescents living with substance abuse, trauma, disabilities, and help them find a way to cope through movement, just as dance has helped me.
Reflecting on her journey, Jasmine acknowledges that while she didn't expect college to help her grow personally, MiraCosta College has done exactly that. And now, as she prepares for her next chapter, Jasmine carries with her the confidence, skills, and support network she has built at MiraCosta, proving that sometimes giving something "one more chance" can lead to discovering exactly where you're meant to be.