Alumni Association
Alumni Scholarship Fund
Because of this belief, any alumni funds raised will go directly to support current CCD students. The CCD Alumni Association — in conjunction with the CCD Foundation “OneCCD” employee-giving campaign — proudly awards scholarships. Read about one of our recipients, Mu Yo.
Your Contribution Goes a Long Way
Donating to the CCD Foundation gives us the opportunity to collectively make a direct impact on an individual’s life. And with each success, the collective effect multiplies throughout society and our surrounding Denver community.
Mu Yo and her family came to America as Burmese refugees with only the clothes they were wearing. They resettled in Aurora, Colorado with hope for a better lifestyle, a stronger education and a more promising future.
However, adjusting to life in America was not an easy task. They found that simple things like going to the grocery store were quite different from the way they obtained food in Myanmar (Burma).
“We were still learning the basics of the English language while living in a refugee camp,” she remembers. “We did not have a proper meal for almost two weeks until we felt comfortable with the new and different ways Americans prepare food.”
Over the years, things became easier for Mu. She received so much support from her high school social worker she decided that was what she wanted to do with her future. Then, she discovered Community College of Denver (CCD) at a college fair. “It was a perfect fit,” she says, “I could study human services and it was close to home.”
She began her studies at CCD in the English as a second language program and then moved into a conversational English class. She began to feel comfortable in day-to-day conversations, which allowed her to move on to more advanced English classes and begin her human services coursework.
Once she got into a writing class, she visited CCD’s Excel Zone every day. It was through the support of the tutors that she was able to truly enjoy writing. Writing her story of coming over to America and finding a path to education helped validate her goals of becoming a social worker. “By the time I had finished three semesters,” she says, “I only needed to visit the tutoring center once a week.”
On top of being a successful student at CCD, Mu is a restaurant server and does home visits for Burmese refugees through the African Community Center. “At first, I was scared to do it because of the language barrier,” but she persisted because she knew that it would have a positive impact on the community. Mu believes that if you love what you do, it is easy in the long term.
This belief paid off with her refugee work. In May 2018, Mu received a certificate in human services. Her family has purchased a home and Mu lives with her parents and her 2-year-old son.
She is continuing her education by studying social work at the Metropolitan State University of Denver.
“Knowing that people helped fund my education helped me stay motivated in school when things got stressful or hard.”
Learn how at CCD Foundation.