In accordance with the ancient traditions of learning, De Anza College will mark a new beginning for 1,100 graduates at its 36th Annual Commencement on Saturday, June 28, 2003. The public is invited to join friends, family, faculty and staff from 9 to 11 a.m. in the Outdoor Events Arena in celebration of remarkable students and their achievements.

Guest speaker for the morning will be Dr. Rolanda Pierre-Dixon, practicing Deputy District Attorney for Santa Clara County. As an expert on domestic violence, Pierre-Dixon makes more than 50 public presentations a year throughout California and numerous other states.

Recipient of this year’s A. Robert DeHart Memorial Scholarship is Deanna Stewart of Cupertino. Stewart graduated from Homestead High School and spent more than 20 years working in the software industry and running her own business. She vividly remembers the fear in her body returning to school after two decades. Her service to this community started immediately upon enrollment. She joined the Honors Program, founded the Honors Club and helped to produce a video for recruiting new Honors students. They even named a service award after her! She was an officer in the Speech and Debate Club and has actively served this last year as Student Trustee on the Foothill-De Anza Community College District Board of Trustees. She was a community health outreach worker with ARIS, the Aids Resource and Information Services of Santa Clara County, helping addicts with health issues. As a single parent, she says, “Hollow indeed is the achievement that is shared by a team of one.” No longer fearful, Stewart will be attending Stanford University next year, majoring in communications. Her dream job is a career in corporate communications or public relations in the biotech industry.

The President’s Award goes this year to Kimberly Gilbertson of Campbell. Thirteen years ago, Gilbertson awoke from a coma. Prior to that she had a great job and was on top of the world. Then, one day, she suffered a traumatic brain injury, classified as an aneurysm. Her doctors told her that she would never walk again. She was also disappointed to learn that she couldn’t talk well and her left side was paralyzed. Gilbertson said, “I would not accept my limitation.” It took her one long year of constant determination to walk again. She embarked on a long journey to learn to read, spell and understand words again that she once knew so well. She started college and carefully worked her way back up and into De Anza’s Physical Therapist Assistant program. As a single mother of two, she has received help from CalWorks, the Occupational Training Institute, the Adapted Physical Education Department and the Educational Diagnostic Center. Her letter of recommendation said: “Kim is indeed the survivor she calls herself. In these times when the term ‘survivor’ has been co-opted for entertainment and financial purposes, its truth still resonates when one knows Kim.” Gilbertson will earn her A.A. in physical therapist assistant and hopes to land a great job in the near future.

You can see a list of De Anza graduates for 2003 on the Web site at www.deanza.edu/news after June 30.

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