Magallanes 1

Birgeet Magallanes
Professor Villareal
College 1 #71134
18 December 2015
Letter
Dear Future Pathways/College 1 Student,
My name is Birgeet Magallanes. I am writing to you to advice you how to get ready to
start a College 1 class. I had the pleasure to be in College 1 in the fall of 2015. Through College
1, I was not only able to learn but also meet new people from different types of majors because
in most of my classes there were students that had similar majors like mine and I was not able to
know what other kinds of majors are in PCC. In addition to, College 1 has demonstrated me
many things in one semester and I will show you how I was able to learn new concepts having
this course.
In College 1, we began to read a book, called Spare Parts, by John Davis. This book
influenced me the way I think in college now, because in the book it shows the lives of four
undocumented teenagers in the United States and how they were able to survive through difficult
circumstances. Nowadays, there are also many troublesome situations when students feel like
they cannot proceed with college, John Davis writes Fredi and Allan may have succeeded in
giving their immigrants students new dreams, but often the reality was that those dreams were
impractical. This quote demonstrates us that sometimes peoples dream does not come true,
however one of the teenagers mentioned in this book, called Oscar, shows us that everything is
possible if the person puts all their time and effort to succeed their goals. John Davis states,
Oscar was accustomed to that. He didnt believe in shortcuts. He believed in hard work, Oscar
influenced me by working very hard even though there are times when I feel like giving up.
I had the privilege to meet John Davis in person, because Pathways program was able to
bring him to Pasadena City College for us to ask questions that we asked in our RRJs. I was
surprised how many students were listening and were willing to ask questions that I had as well.
John Davis enthusiastic to answer every question, such as, what made you want to write about
these for undocumented teenagers who lives miles away from you? How did you meet the four
boys? And why did John Davis added some extra information like the Dream Act, laws, etc.? He
mentions how the book was for people to know that everyone can make their dreams come true,
they just have to make it happen.
The RRJs and reflecting about a topic, helped me a lot to understand concepts better. For
example, in my first RRJ I wrote, These two teenagers have lived all their lives in a misery by
living in a place where education is not important all, but they have the opportunity in the United
State where they can succeed in lifeI actually understand them, since I also was born in
another country and came to U.S. at the age of ten to have a better opportunity in life. While
writing these RRJs and reflecting, I was able to put myself in their shows and to get connected to
the story.

Magallanes 2
I was able to work with others in College 1, we had to present in front of many students
who were also in the Pathways program/College 1 students. At first, I did not know anyone in the
class and I was scare who I was going to be in my group because I thought I was going to do all
the work at the end. To my surprise, I was able to encounter new friends and work together well
as a team. There were times my group struggled with what to agree and not to agree about a
certain topic, which made the project complicated sometimes. However, through these struggles
we have learned that communication and working together was the most important concept for
the group to share ideas, interests, resources, etc.
Three resources that helped me throughout my first semester and I am sure it will help
you too to become a successful student in Pasadena City College is using the Pathways Center,
Shatford Library, and the Writing Center. In the Pathways Center, they were able to help me
transition from high school to college, succeed academically, and any questions that I had when I
had trouble either in math or in my e-Portfolio. In the Shatford Library, I was able to concentrate
better and use help from many librarians who were willing to help you with any questions you
had like what resources are good for a topic. Finally, in the Writing Center, there were many
tutors/professors who helped me when I felt like I was never going to finish an essay because
there were times when I had no idea what to write, they were able to comfort me and helped
throughout my essays.
There are going to be times when you think this course is not worth it for the amount of
units it has, but trust me it will help you understand how college is in real life. Many students at
the beginning of the semester gave up this class because it was too much work, but college is like
this and if you want to prosper in life than you have to manage with work and time. Now thanks
to College 1 course, I believe I am well prepared for my next semesters.