HEALTH EXPERT & SONGWRITER TO SPEAK AT GROSSMONT COLLEGE GRADUATION JUNE 3

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May 26, 2009 (El Cajon)--Grossmont College has announced that Dr. Dorothy Wiley will be the keynote speaker and Jose Molina Serrano will be featured as student speaker at the commencement ceremony on June 3rd at 5:30 p.m. Wiley is a global expert on public health issues, while Serrano is a musician whose music was played aboard the Space Shuttle Columbia.

Wiley, who earned her associate degree in nursing at Grossmont College in 1977, is an associate professor of primary care nursing at the University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA), School of Nursing. She is one of the world’s leading authorities in epidemiology, which is the study of factors and interventions that benefit public health and preventative medicine, and she was an investigator in the development a vaccine to prevent cervical cancer and genital human papillomavirus (HPV) infection, a common infection that causes almost all cases of cervical cancer. Serrano, a resident of La Mesa, is an accomplished guitarist and songwriter who has toured the world during the past four decades with several big-name Latin rock bands, including childhood friend Carlos Santana. But, he always wanted to attend college. “I felt denied and ashamed for not completing my education,” said Serrano, a ninth grade dropout from Tijuana who moved to the United States at age 19. In 2003, Serrano showed up on campus on a day when classes were not in session, and ran into faculty member Baker, who provided registration information and encouragement. Serrano is a candidate for an associate degree in music. Last year, his CD was taken aboard the Space Shuttle Columbia and his song “Away From Home” was played to awaken the sleeping astronauts. The college said 1,103 students are expected to receive associate degrees, along with 346 earned certificates of achievement. About 4,000 people are expected to attend the June 3 ceremony. Grossmont College is located at 8800 Grossmont College Dr., in El Cajon. For driving directions and a campus map, visit http://www.grossmont.edu. For more information about commencement, call (619) 644-7000, ext. 3550, to hear a recorded message.


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