'Any Progress is Good Progress'
Student of the Week: Alyzza Ortiz
“For a while I didn’t know what I wanted to do, and I just kept taking classes to see what caught my eye. I didn’t pause on anything, I just kept going and figured it out on my own using STC’s resources.”
Alyzza Ortiz has always had a special way with children.
Always the go-to babysitter growing up, Ortiz acknowledges that she felt closer to kids than most her age, so it was no surprise that she would carry this into a meaningful career as she got older.
“I would like to become a pediatrician because I feel like I’m a magnet for kids,” Ortiz said. “Anywhere I go they run up to me and say hi or hug me or laugh with me. As long as I get to work with kids, I’ll be fine in a clinical or hospital setting.”
A middle child, Ortiz said her love for children stems from the love she received from her siblings, and the responsibility she felt for both. These traits would translate to her current work with the college.
She is set to pursue her Associate Degree Nursing in spring 2022, and then intents to transfer to UTRGV for a bachelor’s degree.
“I work with our student activities center, and I know how struggling it can be when most things are held online, but that’s what we’re here for,” said Ortiz. “We bring students together to interact with one another and host fun activities on campus like donut days or tie-dye day to bring everyone together.”
The student organization also collaborates with the Student Government Association (SGA) and Student Leadership to meet students' needs. Though her start as a nursing student will not begin till next spring, her ties with the college come from family.
“My mother works here so it was really the best choice for me,” said Ortiz. “I always heard that we had a great nursing program and I was always interested in that.”
The Associate Degree Nursing Program prepares students with the basic competencies to become safe practitioners in the healthcare field. Upon successful completion of the Associate of Applied Science major in Associate Degree Nursing, graduates are be able to sit for the National Council Licensure Examination for Registered Nurses (NCLEX-RN).
After successful completion of this exam, the individual will be a registered nurse and can work in hospitals, day-surgery centers, rehabilitation centers, physicians’ offices, home health care agencies, among other areas.
While Ortiz awaits her start with STC, she advises current students that any progress is good progress.
“For a while I didn’t know what I wanted to do, and I just kept taking classes to see what caught my eye,” she said. “I didn’t pause on anything, I just kept going and figured it out on my own using STC’s resources.”
The aspiring pediatrician said that STC is a place to learn and do what you want to do for your career.
“We’re all trying to get to the same place in succeeding and if you set your eye on where you want to go, and if it helps you financially in any way then I’d say, ‘just take it!’,” she said.