UConn BGS Student Wins Outstanding Student Award

The University Continuing Education Association (UCEA) has named Roberto Cruz Outstanding Continuing Education Student for New England. Cruz, a 37-year-old Bachelor of General Studies (BGS) student at the UConn-Hartford campus, will receive his BGS degree in May 2008.

The UCEA award is based on numerous factors: academic excellence; student activities; university involvement; community contributions; employment; and personal and career goals. Cruz carries a challenging academic course load, while maintaining a 3.856 GPA, working full time, and volunteering at Village for Families and Children in Hartford.

When Cruz moved from his native Puerto Rico to New York City in 1988, he was accepted to the Pre-Med program at NYU. Family finances put an end to that dream, but he never gave up. In 1991, he attended Kingsborough Community College (CUNY). Financial demands made him take another hiatus from his education, until he earned a Certificate in Healthcare Administration at NYU in 2001. Cruz returned to college as a full time student in 2005 at Borough of Manhattan Community College (CUNY) where he made the Dean’s List each semester, while working full time. From 2003 to 2006, he also volunteered as an English as a Second Language instructor at the United Senior Center in Brooklyn, teaching senior citizens the basics of English.

He never gave up on his goal of earning a Bachelor’s degree. When he moved to Connecticut in 2006, he enrolled in UConn’s Bachelor of General Studies program.

“After meeting with an advisor at UConn and witnessing its diversity, I had a pretty good idea that this was the place for me,” Cruz said. “The Bachelor of General Studies program gave me the opportunity to combine my prior college credits from various institutions into a program that allowed me to pursue an individualized focus in Healthcare and Urban Studies. I have been fortunate enough to attend classes at both the Storrs and West Hartford campus and I have enjoyed the courses, the professionalism of the faculty, and how welcoming and diverse the student population is.”

Cruz took classes days, evenings and weekends so he could continue to work full time as a Client Services Account Manager at United Health Group. “The courses at UConn have all been optimal and challenging,” he said. “Classes have made me analyze the information learned and apply it to my daily life. I’m not just learning concepts; I’m also finding functionality to what I have learned.”

With his career goal of community based work in a hospital or healthcare center, Cruz’s coursework and experience at UConn will serve him well.  

“I have met great individuals and professionals in that area, and have become more knowledgeable of the healthcare and urban issues that affect our communities,” Cruz said. “My academic advisor Susan Graham-Handley has been by my side all along and has always provided the academic support that I have needed. The Bachelor of General Studies program has given me the necessary tools to start a new career path with a strong and solid platform.”