National Park College’s (NPC) TRIO Student Support Services (SSS) has named Jaylene
Gonsalves the 2023 TRIO SSS Student of the Year.
Gonsalves graduated with an Associate of Arts and a 3.9 GPA in December. She plans
to earn her degree as an Occupational Therapy Assistant as part of a partnership with
Baptist Health.
As a single mother to her seven-year-old daughter Claire, Gonsalves sets aside time
for her each night. “This is the best part of my day.”
Gonsalves intends to dedicate her life to children with disabilities. “One day I hope
to combine Occupational Therapy with an artistic approach to make the healing process
a fun act of creative expression for patients,” said Gonsalves.
As a TRIO member, Gonsalves seeks tutoring when needed, talks to the staff when struggling
with a class, regularly attends activities and workshops, and seeks out scholarship
opportunities.
“The thing that stands out about Jaylene is her gumption. So many of our first-generation
college students do not know to ask for help until we reach out to them. From the
beginning, Jaylene has taken the initiative to reach out to us and to seek out services
and resources that can help her reach her academic goals. I’ve been so impressed with
her that I will be speaking to our students on the topic of ‘Adopting the Proactive
Mindset,’ and using her success to motivate other students,” said Suzanne Hendrix,
Trio SSS Program Coordinator.
Each year, the TRIO staff selects a student who embodies the TRIO spirit as TRIO SSS
Student of the Year. This student is recognized nationally as a TRIO Achiever and
is included in a booklet that is hand-delivered to members of the United States Congress
in Washington D.C.
