Summer — 2009

Shanna Lehrman

English/Economics/AS Commissioner

“The English Department has professors from amazing universities like University of Pennsylvania and USC. It’s incredible to be taught by people like this at the community college level.”

When asked how long she’s been at SMC, Shanna Lehrman laughs and replies, “That’s a little bit tricky. I was taking high school classes at SMC for two summers. But now I’m full-time here, and after this semester, I’m already going to transfer.” Shanna, you see, is not one to let the grass grow beneath her feet. And her ‘career’ at SMC has been a short—but blazing!—arc.

“I got involved with the AS, and now I’m the Commissioner for Legislative Affairs. I’m in charge of legal representation, essentially. I draft legislation and resolutions—on a schoolwide and statewide level—so we can establish better policies,” she explains. “And I’m also a liaison between SMC and the California Community College Chancellor’s Office.” Phew! What is Shanna going to do for an encore? “I want to go to law school and get my JD and a BA in Business, so I’ll have a combination of business and law, which I think is really cool.” Shanna states unequivocally that ‘involvement’ at SMC is the key to anyone’s success here.

“For me, personally, it’s important because it enhances the entire experience. Even though your stay here may be temporary, you get to meet an incredible number of great people. And they can actually teach you about living and life itself. I like the AS, for instance, because it’s run like a business. So we have all these committee meetings and procedural things; stuff like that. And I’m also the president of one of our clubs at SMC,” she says with a laugh. “It’s the Dead Poets and Authors Society. Is it literary? Absolutely!”

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