Jadelyn Made The Most of Her Time at PCCC

Jadelyn Villa seemed destined for literary success. She learned to read at the age of three and has been writing stories since she was five years old. Almost two decades later, the  poet, journalist, musician, and student leader is concluding one of the most enriching episodes of her personal success story, the PCCC chapter.

Graduating with a 3.98 GPA, Jade receives her Associate in Arts Degree in English with highest honors. She is the recipient of the English Department graduate award and of the prestigious Robert A. Shea Memorial Scholarship, presented to only three graduating students each year.

Looking back over her time here, Jade says, “I am 100 per cent an advocate of coming to PCCC.  The faculty is very supportive. I made connections with so many people here and forged relationships. I made the most of my time at PCCC and feel really set up for my future.”

If family history is considered, attending PCCC was also in Jade’s destiny. Her father, mother, and sister are all alumni. “My dad and sister are all about business and my mom is a nurse,” said Jade.  “I’m the only one in the family involved in the creative arts.”

As a student at Clifton High School, Jade was always in honors English classes, and she favored writing narratives and essays until a creative writing class “opened my eyes to what poetry can be.”  

Now poetry is Jade’s favorite form of expression, and she took first place last year in PCCC’s English Department Spring Poetry Contest. “The contest theme was to write about something in bloom,” said Jade. “I wrote about my struggle with seasonal depression.’

From the start, Jade joined the staff of Visions, PCCC’s student-run newspaper, sharpening her journalistic skills and covering campus events. “It was very rewarding to work on the school newspaper,” says Jade.

When Visions’ faculty advisor, Professor Christine Redman-Waldeyer asked Jade to take over for the departing editor-in-chief, she agreed and stepped up to the job, winning accolades for her leadership.

“I had never been top dog before,” says Jade. “It was a little scary at first, but I met amazing people and am so grateful for the opportunities.”

A writing class with Professor Alan Mitnick gave her new insights into fiction. “I started a novel in high school and have been working more on that. It’s about a young girl who becomes friends with a spirit and is in the genre of magical realism.”

Among Jade’s favorite writers are Neil Gamen and John Greene and she admires the poetry of Sylvia Plath, Adrienne Rich, and Sappho, among others.

Outside of school Jade works as a barista at a coffee bar and was recently promoted to a supervisory role. She is very excited about bringing poetry to the bar. “We started poetry nights every other Sunday, and it’s been going great.”

There is hardly an art form Jade hasn’t experienced. She does ceramics and belonged to a studio art club. She sang in her middle school choir and also plays violin, guitar, and ukelele. “I found so many friends through playing in the school orchestra. That brought me so much joy.”  

Jade will continue her education at Drew University in a five-year program pursuing a bachelor’s in English/Creative Writing and a master’s in teaching. Her goal is to be a teacher while writing and publishing her works, and she strives to do good through writing.

“I’d love to express my passion for activism and social justice through journalism. “I have learned to write both creatively and critically about the world around me through Visions and my major studies. As a queer Latina student, using my voice and a platform to inform fellow students about the politics that directly affect them or to help mobilize the community in fighting for a cause is very important to me. “

Written by Linda Telesco
Photo by Page Saunders