PCC Awards First Gabe Zimmerman Memorial Scholarship

January 11, 2012

Tucson, AZ – Pima Community College is awarding the inaugural Gabe Zimmerman Memorial Scholarship to a displaced worker who after the recession hit came to PCC to study for a new career in social work.

John Roldán, 61, will be presented the $1,000 scholarship at the regular meeting of the PCC Board of Governors Wednesday night. The meeting will begin at 7 p.m. in the Community/Board Room of PCC’s District Office, 4905 E. Broadway.

The PCC Foundation scholarship was established in 2011 for students who plan careers in public or community service. It is named for Gabe Zimmerman, who worked for U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords and was killed in the Jan. 8, 2011, shootings. Gabe was the son of PCC employee Ross Zimmerman.

For years, John had made his living teaching employees in local businesses and government how to use computers. That contract work dried up in the recession of 2008-09. John had been volunteering at several local non-profit organizations, including those helping low-income families surmount housing challenges, and decided to get the education needed to turn that passion for helping into a career.

John acknowledges that returning to school after some 40 years was difficult at first, but that PCC’s faculty has been extremely helpful. “The staff and faculty at PCC have continued to support and encourage me, inspiring me in my determination to succeed in my new endeavor,” John says.

At PCC, John is a member of the Phi Theta Kappa international scholastic honorary society for two-year colleges. After completing his associate’s degree in Social Services at PCC this summer, he intends to pursue a bachelor’s degree in social work at Arizona State University. He hopes to get a job helping specialized populations such as the disabled or incarcerated obtain affordable housing.

John notes that his choice of career is the same as Gabe’s. “I’m much older than Gabe, but I’m following in his footsteps,” he says.

CONTACT:
C.J. Karamargin
Vice Chancellor for Public Information and Government Relations
(520) 206-4850