SAN ANTONIO – With a passion for San Antonio and the community, Aja Leija always knew she wanted to make a difference.
She became a voice for the students on her college campus while attending San Antonio Community College.
After taking her first year of classes remotely during the pandemic, she decided to get more involved with her campus.
She took a massive step and applied for the Alamo Colleges Student Trustee position.
“The student trustee position, it’s all five colleges. So it’s one student who has the voice of all of the 65,000 students at Alamo Colleges to talk directly to the board,” Leija said.
She got the position and was quickly immersed into not just the campus life of San Antonio Community College but the entire Alamo College community. Her positive attitude helped her shine in her interviews. It was also clear she was able to touch the lives of her classmates in a big way.
“She just knew our students, you know, and as a student herself who has experienced a lot, we thought that she would be a good representation of the student voice,” Dr. Jacob-Aidan Martinez, director of student success said.
For Leija, being a voice for the students has been a rewarding experience.
“Everyone is here to better themselves that are their lives. And of course it like transfers onto their generation. So their children, their children’s children, it’s going to help with their income and just their lives overall. And it’s beautiful just to see so many people walking on campus all the time knowing that they’re bettering their lives,” Leija said.
Next up for her, she has already been accepted into the University of Texas at San Antonio where she plans to continue studying business administration.
Her goal is to work for a nonprofit in San Antonio to continue to give back to her community.
