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| For Immediate Release | Contact: Felicia M. Torrez |
| May 23, 2008 | Phone: (559) 934-2132 |
Robert Wallace--West Hills College Coalinga ASB President, Father of Five, Manages 4.0
Some might wonder how 39 year-old Robert Wallace does it all. He is a husband, a father of five young children, a student, a volunteer and ASB president at West Hills College Coalinga. This semester he took 18 units, worked 20 hours a week, volunteered 20 hours a week and spent about 15 hours a week fulfilling his duties as ASB president and will still manage to have a 4.0 GPA this semester.
Robert is able to juggle everything with the support of his wife and family. He says his wife, Susan, knows the importance of education and supports him 100 percent.
Robert began his classes at WHC Coalinga two years ago. Shortly after he and his wife moved their family to Fresno. After moving, Robert decided he would continue finishing his associate’s degree at West Hills because he had good working relationships with the staff and teachers.
He thought to himself, “Why pull myself out of an environment that I like and put myself into an environment where I know nobody.” He added that he felt he would get more attention at West Hills because of the small campus size.
For 18 months, he commuted back and forth from Fresno to Coalinga leaving as early as five o’clock in the morning. Upon his arrival, he would go to his classes, work and participate in various ASB activities. Robert recalls leaving the campus around 9 o’clock every evening. He event spend some Saturdays around the campus when he and other fellow ASB officers volunteered to help at campus events. In March, Robert and his family moved back to Coalinga.
At the honors brunch earlier this month, Robert received the Norine Oliver Memorial Scholarship as well as the SSS Trio Directors Award and the DSPS Outstanding Student Award.
Robert received his associate’s degree in business management on Friday and is planning to pursue a bachelor’s degree in education. He would like to teach at the community college or university level.
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West Hills Community College District serves the west side of the San Joaquin Valley and is part of the California Community College System. Its two colleges, West Hills College Coalinga, which includes North District Center, Firebaugh, and West Hills College Lemoore, serve more than 6,000 students on campus and online each semester.