“I earned my master’s degree in business and, even though I liked my job, a part of me wanted to do something I was really passionate about,” explained Alysse Dambrot, the 2022 New Century Workforce Pathway Scholar from the Community College of Allegheny County (CCAC). “I finally decided to go back to school and train for the career I wanted in physical therapy. I love what I do now. I wouldn’t have been able to fulfil my dreams without community college.”
Ms. Dambrot is a member of the 28th Annual All-Pennsylvania Academic Team, a remarkable group of community college students who have achieved academic excellence and demonstrated a commitment to their colleges and communities. The 2022 awardees include 46 outstanding community college transfer scholars and eight exceptional workforce pathway scholars from across the Commonwealth.
“CCAC offered me an incredible learning experience, and one for which I’m very grateful. The curriculum was challenging – definitely on par with the university I attended – and the small class sizes made it more personal,” she said.
Inspired by her experience in high school athletics, Ms. Dambrot moved to Pittsburgh to work at a physical therapy clinic. She dreamed of helping young athletes, how someone once helped her when she tore her ACL playing high school sports. She will be taking her boards after graduation this spring, then plans to stay in Pennsylvania and add her skills to the workforce.
Ms. Dambrot received the highest All-PA application score in Pennsylvania and was named the Coca-Cola New Century Workforce Pathway Scholar, which comes with a $1,250 award from the Coca-Cola Educational Foundation. Workforce scholars must have a minimum of 12 college-level credit hours at a community college and a cumulative GPA of 3.5 or higher.
“It is an incredible honor to be a member of the All-PA Academic Team,” reflected Ms. Dambrot. “I’m just so grateful to have found a workforce program that was affordable enough for me to pursue my dreams, since I didn’t get it exactly right with my master’s and bachelor’s degrees. These community college workforce programs are so important to students like me – and Pennsylvania as a whole.”
The All-USA Community College Academic Team is sponsored by Cengage, with additional support provided by Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society (PTK) and the American Association of Community Colleges (AACC). The New Century Scholars program is sponsored by The Coca-Cola Foundation, Coca-Cola Scholars Foundation, PTK and the AACC.
The All-USA Community College Academic Team is sponsored by Cengage, with additional support provided by Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society (PTK) and the American Association of Community Colleges (AACC). The New Century Scholars program is sponsored by The Coca-Cola Foundation, Coca-Cola Scholars Foundation, PTK and the AACC. In addition to being individually recognized on Twitter during Community College Month in April, a video honoring their achievement is included below. For more information on the 2022 All-PA Team, please click here: https://bit.ly/2022PATeam.