When Chisa Menyon Daye was a high school sophomore in Daly City, she attended a College of San Mateo student festival. About five years later—after working in the retail industry and a “soul searching” summer—she still had that day impressed in her memory.

“I really liked the campus, I thought it was beautiful,” she said. “I liked how the students interacted with each other.”

The memory led to her enrollment at CSM for the spring 2002 semester, six months of student government activity, and a 4.0 grade point average in 12 units worth of “hard” classes.

“This campus is very nurturing and it’s very open for everyone,” she said of her experience at CSM. “People are able to be themselves here. It helps them academically and with their people skills. It lets students reach their full potential.”

Daye, who will serve her second consecutive term as a student senator in the fall, is a 21-year-old psychology major. She said she may become a high school teacher to inform students about “all the opportunities available” the way her counselors have at CSM. And she has thoughts of becoming a civil rights attorney because of her concern that not all Americans are receiving entitlements.

“Being a lawyer,” she said, “I don’t know how much I can change all this but I think every little bit helps. Everyone can make a difference.”

And Daye’s current activities make a good case that she’s already doing her part.

In the spring, the Student Ambassador advised high school students about the benefits of attending CSM, she moderated a diversity forum, she served as vice p resident of the Future Lawyers of America club, she attended student government conferences and she sang at a hip-hop event. Her non-campus involvement included participating in an AIDS walk and performing in a gospel and motivational singing group. This summer, Daye begins an internship with San Mateo County as a “Child Advocate” for abused and neglected children.

All and all, it looks like a winning case.

This feature first appeared in CSM Currents in Fall 2002.