Ocean County College OceanViews Magazine 2026 Summer-Fall - Flipbook - Page 11
FINDING THEIR FOOTING
Pettersen remembers spending her first weeks on campus almost
entirely alone. “I didn’t speak to anyone. I was isolated.”
That began to change as professors and peers encouraged her to
get involved. When Mompoint first invited her to join the Social
Work club, Pettersen couldn’t picture herself saying yes; she had
never joined a club before. But before her time at OCC was up, she
would be serving as the club’s vice president.
Bryceland’s turning point came from an unexpected phone call.
Taking classes online, she assumed she was just another name
on a screen, but Mompoint noticed the quality of her writing and
the potential behind it and reached out personally, encouraging
Bryceland to come to campus because she believed she had something to contribute. That invitation changed everything.
“Once I came in person, I got really involved,” Bryceland said.
“Staying involved was motivational.”
Soon she was helping organize clothing drives for survivors of
domestic violence, planning community outreach events, and
mentoring other students entering the program.
Alvaro, who once wondered whether she could succeed while
studying in her second language, graduated with membership in
three honor societies, earned a place on the President’s List and
received a leadership scholarship. More important than any recognition, she said, was what those accomplishments meant. “I proved
to myself that I belong in higher education.”
Jones found his confidence through community. As a member—and
eventually the president—of the Social Work club, he found peers
who encouraged him and a mentor who convinced him his opinion
mattered. “Professor Mompoint let me know that I had a voice,” he
said. That confidence changed the way he saw himself. Today, he
plans to earn not only a bachelor’s degree, but eventually a doctorate in social work. “I want that ‘doctor’ in front of my name.”
Zuniga initially worried that returning to school later than many of
her classmates would make her feel out of place. Instead, she found
connection—in her professors, her classmates, and in the club,
where collaboration became one of her favorite parts of college. “It
made me a better student to be more involved,” she said.
For O’Donnell, involvement meant service. Whether working in the
Tutoring Center, participating in campus organizations or completing a practicum, each opportunity reinforced that they had chosen
the right path. “It made me feel like I found my place and was making a real impact on my community.”
THEIR OWN WORDS
For each of these students, somewhere along the way, “So what?”
stopped being Professor Mompoint’s phrase. It became their own.
Bryceland no longer asks herself what could go wrong. “What if it
works out?” she asks instead.
Alvaro hopes to become the kind of advocate she once needed as
a newcomer to this country. Jones wants to be the social worker
he wishes he’d had growing up. Zuniga discovered that the advocacy she had always been searching for had a name: social work.
O’Donnell found purpose by investing in the success of others.
Their aspirations reflect the spirit of this cohort, whose members
plan to pursue careers serving children, families, immigrants,
veterans, and underserved communities.
And Pettersen, who once wasn’t sure college was even possible,
now looks toward the future with a very different outlook.
“Everything is an option now.”
Ocean Views
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