Michael Mino

Student

“The level of diversity we have at SMC is unbelievable. And there’s a club or interest group for everybody. Joining them makes for success.”

You know the type of student: Got it all goin’; got all the contacts, best counselors, best classes; heading for a great career; just dripping ‘success’; got the charisma. Michael Mino’s just that type. And here’s how he started: “I moved here from a small town in the Midwest, and here I was in LA. And when I first got to SMC, I just felt kind of lost. Afraid, even. I just didn’t know where I was going,” he says. “But the professors here—and the students, too—they’re just inspiring. I had so many people helping me out, making me feel better about myself. It all boiled down to just feeling a sense of acceptance. And that feeling allowed me to find my focus.”

Michael’s ‘focus’ quickly became the SMC life that buzzes, sings, creates, and celebrates completely outside the classrooms and labs. He found his strengths when he joined with others. “Being in an SMC club can make you a successful student, a successful person,” he says. “Through the Filmmakers, I got involved in a leadership position and—eventually—in the Student Government at large. Right now, I’m the Director of Student Services, where I’m the liaison between all the student centers.” And in this position—though there are stresses, deadlines, and meetings galore—Michael has come to be wise in the ways that SMC reaches out to its people.

“I work with the Women’s Center, the Latino Center, the Black Collegians, and Financial Aid: all that,” he says. “And one of my passions is to enhance awareness of drug and alcohol issues. So I basically do all I can to make sure that all of these programs and issues have all the resources they need to reach as many students as possible,” he says. “This college has so much to offer anyone. And all you have to do is simply ask.”

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