Originally from Albania and growing up in Greece, Denisa Bozhiqi aspired to attend college in the United States. Working in sales and store management after graduating high school, she saved money for her education, as did her parents, to ensure this academic goal was accomplished. Graduating with a Business – General degree with High Honor May 3, Denisa will transfer to Temple University in the fall to pursue a Marketing degree. Her journey as an international student involves adjusting to a new culture and reuniting with family.

Prior to arriving at CCP in August 2022, Denisa had not seen her aunt in person in 15 years. Through their conversations, her relative was always talking about Philadelphia and CCP.

“My aunt always talked about how affordable and supportive CCP was—it made me feel confident about starting my journey there,” she said.

“My aunt said the College was affordable, and she praised CCP,” said Denisa.

Arriving at CCP in August 2022, she faced some cultural and language barriers but soon met other international students.

“Meeting other students who shared similar stories made me feel less alone. Starting at CCP was the best way for me to understand America and adjust at my own pace,” said Denisa.

Faculty and staff around the College helped Denisa navigate her higher education experience.

“When I first arrived, I was scared—wondering if I’d be good enough or get good grades. But CCP values effort and creativity. That helped boost my confidence. The International Student Services team has been incredible—they’ve supported me every step of the way. My professors truly understood me and believed in me. Their support and personal stories helped me grow in ways I never expected,” she said.

Starting at CCP allowed her to save money toward her bachelor’s degree, and Denisa took advantage of the dual admission program, which enabled her to plan her transfer to Temple, as well as receive an annual $10,000 scholarship for three years.

Being in Philadelphia has helped Denisa reconnect with her aunt and develop a great relationship with her cousins, an added benefit to pursing her education at CCP. She credits the College with enabling her to decide on a career path and next steps.

“Your first year here is a time to discover who you are. With discipline and consistency, anything is possible. No matter where you are in life, CCP is the place where you can begin again and shape your future,” she said.

In her two years at Community College of Philadelphia, Angie Orozco-Rasique has a list of accomplishments that could fill a book. To name a few: She is student trustee and president of the Student Government Association, she founded the Period Poverty Project to promote menstrual and reproductive wellness by establishing four 'menstruation stations' on campus, and she is vice president of the WEALTH•NESS financial literacy club.

As she turns the page on her time at CCP, Angie says she is “ready for a new chapter.”

She will be graduating in May with a Business-General major, having maintained a strong 4.0 GPA throughout all of college. Although she isn’t ready to announce where she plans to continue her learning, she is interested in pursuing an education in fields that center advocacy. So much of her extracurricular work—both on campus and off—focuses on supporting others and uplifting communities.

At CCP, she is secretary for the Latin American Student Organization, and she is an anti-violence peer leader with the It’s On Us initiative—that’s in addition to her leadership roles in student government, the Period Poverty Project, and WEALTH•NESS.

Off campus, Angie is a fellow with the gender-equity nonprofit Women’s Way (where she is also associate producer on the organization’s podcast), an intern at the Steven Center of Innovation and Finance at University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School, an intern at the nonprofit Campaign for Working Families, a research assistant at Penn’s Graduate School of Education, and a co-lead at the local arm of Students Against Period Poverty. She also finds time to volunteer on the side.

“I really enjoy the work I do,” Angie says. “I feel privileged to do these things. I know that people can inspire me, but also, I’ve learned that I can inspire other people.”

Many of the best advocates can point to people who advocated for them along the way. One of the biggest supports she had at the College was the Gender and Sexuality Resource Center. She says Kelly Lake and Melissa Fogg, who are in charge of the center, “have always been there for me.”

“They always just propelled me to keep moving forward despite anything going on,” she says. “Whether it was in negative time in my life, a neutral time, or a great time. I really appreciate the people there. They’re the best.”

The Gender and Sexuality Resource center helped set Angie up with a grant through Parx Casino to start the Period Poverty Project, which now provides students with free pads and tampons as well as support groups and a safe place for community.

Angie recently appeared in a CBS News story with Kelly and Melissa to show off the College’s Health Jawn, a free reproductive health vending machine at CCP. The Period Poverty Project helps keep the vending machine supplied with menstrual health items.

Another major resource for Angie, and part of the reason she enrolled at CCP in the first place, is the Octavius Catto Scholarship. While a student at Central High School, she saw a poster for the Catto Scholarship.

“I always walked past it,” she says, “but then one day I was like, ‘oh my gosh, I have to actually commit to a college.’ I had a few options around the city, but I didn’t really want to pay that much, so I took a good look at that poster.”

She went to her counselor and asked what she needed to do. From there, she attended an express enrollment event “and then it was just history from there.”

“I need to give a shoutout to Catto,” she says. “I have a Catto coach. His name is Greg Nelson. Catto is always there for me. I recently got a Catto award, which was so awesome. If they ever need a guest speaker—either Catto or the Gender and Sexuality Resource Center—I’m always on call.”

Angie credits CCP with giving her the freedom and support to take on so many projects while keeping up with her studies.

“It was inspiring in some ways because it did teach me I can step into these leadership roles and thrive,” she says. “I think it taught me a lot about how to navigate the real world because I met and learned to appreciate a diverse set of people.”

Earlier this year, Angie was named a semifinalist for the prestigious Jack Kent Cooke Undergraduate Transfer Scholarship, a highly selective, national program for community college students seeking to complete their bachelor’s degrees at four-year colleges or universities. She was one of five CCP students selected as a semifinalist and one of 467 semifinalists in the nation.

Dave Hansen is a natural connector. He always seems to be able to link those he encounters with other people and resources to help them achieve their goals. Dave said his connecting skills are really just about efficiency. “I think what irks me the most is when things are inefficient,” Dave said. “I think we could get a lot of stuff done if we just connected certain people to the right people.”

This skill has helped Dave tremendously since he started at the College in 2023 as a Business–General major. After his first year, Dave got involved in several groups and activities around campus. In fact, he’s so involved that his friends often joke that he lives on campus.

In addition to working as a peer leader in the Academic Advising office, Dave is also a founding member of the student group WEALTH•NESS. He has also served as a member of the Phi Theta Kappa (PTK) International Honor Society, the Student Government Association, and CCP’s student chapter of the National Association of Black Accountants. The recipient of three prestigious scholarships, including the Octavius Catto Scholarship Dave was awarded the PepsiCo Scholarship this year and has received a PTK scholarship from Drexel, one of the colleges he is considering transferring to.

After graduation, Dave plans to transfer to a four-year university where he wants to study Finance or Economics. Eventually, he hopes to use his education and natural skills to reform systems in the United States, like the health care system. “There’s a huge flaw within the health care system. Insurance is at an all-time high,” Dave said. “I understand we live in a capitalist society and that we pay for expedited services and quality of care,” he continued. “But I feel like a lot of insurance companies can still make a profit without sacrificing the quality of care.”

When considering how his skills can help reform different systems in our society, Dave said his mind usually jumps to health care because of his initial interest in studying pre-med. But Dave doesn’t want to get pigeon-holed into just one industry. “There’s just so much potential when it comes to economics that I don’t want to limit myself,” he said. “I do think that being able to be a jack of all trades is nice.”

Though Dave is excited to move on to the next phase of his educational journey, he said he will miss CCP, primarily the people and connections he’s made here. “I just enjoy the culture [here],” Dave said. "I enjoy the people that I’ve surrounded myself with, I enjoy the community that I have here.”

Dave is hopeful that he’ll stay connected to the relationships he’s built at CCP—especially to his mentor, Economics professor, Chris Popescu, and his Catto success coach, Lacresha Allen. Dave applied to universities in Philadelphia like Drexel and University of Pennsylvania, so it’s likely that he’ll stay in the area. But regardless of where he ends up, Dave is ready for the next step. He said, “I am excited about graduating, I am excited about going to the next university. ... I'm always excited about new things.”