Michelle Jones
Meet Michelle
Pronouns: She/Her
Major: English (Literary Criticism)
Year: Graduate Student
Hometown: Santa Rosa, CA
What is your favorite memory or experience at SSU?
The spring 2022 commencement ceremony, where I earned my B.A. in English (Literature), is absolutely my most cherished memory at Sonoma State as of yet. I was selected as the student banner bearer for the School of Arts and Humanities ceremony, which also afforded me the honor of spending time on stage and backstage with my professors and administrators. My entire SSU experience had been virtual, due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Thus, this was the first time I had met any of my professors or administrators in-person. They exceeded my expectations! The acceptance and warmth they had shown me through our various virtual modalities was manifest ten-fold during the ceremony. Their comradery, in which I was included fully, cemented my dream of one day returning to SSU as an educator. As the university’s mission was being explained to everyone gathered in the GMC (Green Music Center) and out on the lawn, I was able to genuinely think. Yes, these are more than just words, and I feel so honored and privileged to be a part of a community filled with so many amazingly creative and supportive individuals!
What made you choose SSU?
After my father died suddenly in fall 2018, my mom and I went through a period of profound economic insecurity. Moreover, we were very emotionally shaken from this massive loss to our tight-knit family. As such, my plans for transfer from Santa Rosa Junior College underwent significant alterations. My mom and myself needed my education to remain local so that we could remain together as we began to rebuild our lives. I was welcomed, with open arms and offers of abundant support, to Sonoma State in fall 2020. Throughout the remainder of my undergraduate degree, SSU proved itself to be more than as good as its word. Thanks to my involvement in the McNair Scholars program and the support of my incredible instructors and mentors, I soon found myself presenting research at conferences, publishing an article in the McNair Scholars journal, and preparing to enter graduate school (my long-held dream). Continuing my postsecondary education into graduate study at Sonoma State seemed, quite frankly, to be a no-brainer. I knew that I would continue to receive excellent instruction, be prepared to teach English at the college level, and, most importantly of all, remain among the supportive community I had come to know and love.
What has been the most challenging part of your college experience and what did you learn from it?
The most challenging part of my college experience has been my ongoing struggle to feel comfortable asking for help, especially as regards my visual disability. Due to some rather inappropriate behavior from childhood educators, I became quite wary of approaching instructors with questions or concerns over how my lack of visual acuity might affect the way in which I approach an assignment. Thankfully, my interactions with faculty, staff, and students at Sonoma State have succeeded in repairing my confidence. I was never treated as a bother, or worse, a burden. Instead, my instructors and classmates were eager to learn how best to support me. I was routinely gobsmacked by their unprompted and overflowing kindness. I was viewed as a whole person, deserving of respect and understanding. Thanks to the abundance of these interactions, I have learned to value myself more fully. I can not say that I never feel that constricting feeling of dread in my chest when I need to reach out about addressing a potential visual conflict, but I now have the confidence and self-worth to recognize that my status as a legally blind individual should not, does not, and will not preclude me from achieving my dreams.
What have you been involved with at SSU?
Writing Center Tutor through the LARC (Learning and Academic Resource Center) and Former McNair Scholar (Fall 2020-Spring 2022)