What does it mean to be a commuter student at a community college? While commuter students might have a different meaning at a live-on-campus, here at Mt. San Jacinto College (MSJC), with our wide array of campuses spanning from Temecula, Menifee, and San Jacinto, it means something a little different. To many MSJC students, this means having to traverse multiple city lines and about a 45-60 minute drive in each direction to get to your class of the day, rain or shine, like any day job would.
While the phrase “commuter student” isn’t something you would typically associate with a community college, a campus full of commuters, to Niveya Qasem, it means her ability to get to class and complete her work on time all while driving the length of the class to get there. Niveya is a sophomore student at MSJC and has had to balance this “work-life schedule” since her first semester. “I get a lot of crucial information in person, but driving for longer than the class just doesn’t seem worth it sometimes,” says Niveya, speaking about her struggles balancing schoolwork and her commitment to in-person classes. She cites motivation as her prime worry: “By the time you get home, you’re exhausted with your house chores and driving back and forth, and all the homework from all your classes is just so overwhelming to even look at.”
Niveya is not alone in her feelings of being overwhelmed by the continuous back and forth. Students like Lindsey Lemus, who has to travel from the San Jacinto campus to the Menifee campus and back all in one day to get to her classes, can agree. Lemus mentions, “Balancing my other schoolwork with my commute makes me feel like I could catch up with other work based on the time it takes me to drive back and forth to my out-of-town classes.” Lemus, a resident of San Jacinto and a sophomore student, said it only takes her about 10 minutes to get to the San Jacinto campus daily. Once you add the Menifee campus and her second class in San Jacinto, 10 minutes turns into hours on the road.
Many of the students, when asked the question, “What does it mean to be a commuter student at a community college, and how does it affect you?” stated that the weather, driving conditions, and motivation are the main sources of stress surrounding their commute to and from school. Whether they go twice or five times a week, these were the main things most out-of-town MSJC students had in common.
While motivation seems like the prime driving source in our commuter students’ struggles, inclement weather is not far behind. “Driving there, say gas isn’t a problem, all of the potholes and unstable roads make me less motivated to go.” says an MSJC sophomore student who was more than weary of attending classes after the February 6th storms that ravaged the roads from Lake Elsinore to San Jacinto. The intense, heavy rainfall that rocked Riverside County continuously for 48 hours left the roads overrun by potholes forming faster than they could be filled and roads so beyond flooded that you could barely drive the street without ruining your car.
“The weather those couple days wasn’t like anything I’ve ever had to drive through before. The roads were terrifying to drive on!” says the student, claiming they almost hydroplaned on the way to class and still managed to make it on time, only for the class to end 20 minutes before it was supposed to. While we can appreciate that class ends a couple of minutes early, most commuter students tend to feel differently, as driving to and from campus equals the length of the class. This doesn’t even factor in the number of students using public transportation or Uber/Lyft daily.
Despite the challenges and factors beyond their control, students at MSJC demonstrate determination and resilience in pursuing their education and navigating the complexities of commuter life at a community college. Students persevere through these challenges. Pulled by an invisible string of a commitment to education and a relentless need to succeed, these students show they are up to the challenge. These students are long overdue for recognition of their role in shaping the identity and spirit of Mt. San Jacinto College and making it the dynamic and diverse campus it is today.
