July 4, 2012
^ lo r tla n h (O b se rv e r NW C ollege C areers
s p e c ia l
Page 5
e d itio n
Student Seated on Commission
P ortland C om m unity C ollege stu
dent C harlene G om ez o f Lake O sw ego
has been nam ed to the L egislature's
H igher E ducation C oordinating C o m
m ission, w hich sets goals and acco u n t
ability m easures for the state’s c o l
leges and universities.
G o m e z a tte n d s c la s s e s at th e
S ylvania C am pus in southw est P o rt
land and serves as that cam pus' stu
dent governm ent director o f leg isla
tion. She has w orked at PC C to o rg a
nize voter registration drives and rep
< -
Portland Commu
nity College
student Charlene
Gomez has been
appointed to the
state's Higher
Education Coordi
nating Commis
sion. She is the
first member o f her
family to go to
college.
resent student interests at the cam pus
and the college.
She is pursing degrees in business
and the ophthalm ic field.
"I am a first-generation A m erican
and the first in m y fam ily to go to
college," G om ez said. "I w ould have
n ev er im agined m y self having the
o p portunity to w ork w ith state rep re
sentatives, and that's w hy I am so
excited and honored for the o p p o rtu
nity to serve m y com m unity and the
state o f O reg o n .”
Math Major has Colleges Calling Him
PCC student named
national scholar
finances are taken care of, I can say 'W hat do
you have to o ffer m e?' I don't have to com pro
m ise m y education. I can go and pick the
school that is the best."
T he Jack K ent C ooke F oundation's U n
dergraduate T ran sfer S ch o larsh ip Program
It's not every day a Portland C om m unity
C o llege student is told by C olum bia U n iv er
sity to "please, apply."
F o r A dam E ide, 33, that day did co m e as a
result o f T he Jack K ent C ooke Foundation
aw arding him its U ndergraduate T ran sfer
S cholarship. It w ill provide him w ith up to
$30,000 a y e ar fo r three years tow ards tuition
and a stipend, beginning in the fall.
T h e northeast P ortland resident is the first
P C C student to w in the scholarship in five
years and is the first-ever m ale to represent
the college. H e is one o f 60 scholars that w ere
pick ed from 786 applicants nationw ide.
A s a result o f this honor, the m ath m ajo r
has been earning inquiries from prestigious
colleges and universities all ov er the U nited
States that w ould love it if he applied to their
in stitu tio n s.
E ide, w ho has already been accep ted into
Adam Eide
Pacific U niversity and the U niversity o f P ort
land, said that list o f possible transfer d e sti
nations includes C olum bia, w hich sent him
an application shortly after being nam ed a
scholar.
"All th roughout college, you k in d o f have
to co m p ro m ise y o u r ed u catio n a little bit
b ecau se o f costs," he said. "N ow that m y
days o f school, w hich he attributes to tl
fam ily situation.
W anting do m ore in life than ju s t manag
an auto dealership, E ide enrolled at PC C i
the fall o f 2010 w here he re-kindled his lov
o f math. A fter burning through savings t
supports achieving co m m u n ity college stu pay fo r his first year, he earn ed a $ 2 ,0 0
d en ts w ith financial need as they transfer to
H ow ard S. W right Scholarship from the PC(
and co m p lete their bachelor's degrees at the
Foundation for his second year. At the sami
nation's top fo u r-y ear co lleg es and universi
tim e, he becam e so proficient at m ath that h<
ties.
w as hired on as a m ath tutor five days a weel
E ide's goal is to becom e a m athem atics
at the C ascade C am pus L earning C enter.
teacher. T his trajectory tow ard reaching this
As he exits com m unity college, Eide ha:
goal probably w ouldn't have happened if it
one last problem to solve - w hat university
w eren t for his tight-knit fam ily grow ing up in
will he transfer to? The pressure is on to fine
V ernonia.
an answ er.
H e adm its his fam ily struggled during
"Not only do I have m y self not to let dowi
those tim es as his single m o th er w orked hard
but all my fam ily - m y m om , my aunt that h<
to raise seven children (E ide's dad left w hen
alw ays helped and pushed m e, m y friends
he w as ju s t 2 years old). H e help ed out the
he said o f m aking the m ost o f the schola
fam ily w hen he w as o ld er by w orking at a
ship. "A nd now I have a foundation th<
B eaverton c ar dealership. H e had been an
invested a great deal o f m oney because the
honors student as a freshm an, but his grades
believe in me, and I can't let them dow n. I hav
d ro p p ed o ff his senior y e ar and m issed 58
to m ake sure I succeed for those people."
on the
Waterfront
c o n t i n u e d f r o m page 3
performances, four stages, zydeco,
blues and swing dances, workshops
and artist interviews, and Health Net
Health Pavilion. You can sign up for
free health screenings for blood pres
sure, visual sight, glaucoma, diabetes
Harmonica virtuoso Charlie
Musselwhite, one o f the
headliners for the Waterfront
Blues Festival.
and hearing.
The Waterfront Blues Festival also
offers eight Delta Music Experience
B lues C ru ise s on the b ea u tifu l
Willamette River and four After Hours
All-Stars Concerts at the M arriott
Hotel Ballroom. For details, visit
waterfrontbluesfest.com .
Regular festival entry is a suggested
donation of $ 10 (or more) plus two cans
of food (or more) per person per day,
making this festival one of the great
entertainment bargains of the summer.