The continual process of educational development was established once more for many Oxnard College students at this year’s commencement ceremony.

Slightly more than 300 students participated in this year’s ceremony to receive either an Associate Degree, a Certificate of Achievement or a Vocational degree from programs such as Dental Hygiene, Automotive and many other occupational programs offered at Oxnard College while according to the Oxnard College Office of Admissions and Records, 847 students were eligible to graduate

Several honored guests were in attendance including the Ventura Community College Board of Trustees members Robert Huber, chair of the board, Cheryl Heitmann, vice chair of the board and trustees Stephen Blum, Larry Miller and Arturo Hernandez as well as Chancellor James Meznek.

According to Oxnard College President Richard Duran, the ultimate goal of the college is to guide students toward a degree.

“Everything that we do here is all geared toward accomplishing the goal,” said Duran in a phone interview. “So I take satisfaction in knowing that we are meeting that goal.”

The ceremony started off with a welcoming address from Erika Endrijonas, executive vice president of student learning.

According to Duran, the best role for the ceremony revolves around a student speaker to share his or her experiences during their tenure at the college.

Oxnard College student José Luis DeLara followed Endrijonas with just that: a speech about the role of each student and their own experiences that guide them to gaining a degree.

“This is the place where you build the foundation of your academia…you will never forget Oxnard College,” the UC Berkeley bound student said.

DeLara, who was in the U.S. Navy for seven years prior to attending Oxnard College, and made it clear that people can learn from a good experience in their life.

“Everyone does one good thing in their life and we should try and learn from that,” said DeLara.

Whether earning a vocational program degree, an associate degree, or transferring on to a four-year university, DeLara gave the students one thing to get out of their experiences at Oxnard College: continue to learn beyond community college.

“Thirst for truth, strive for knowledge and keep your academics thriving,” DeLara said