As I stepped into the Mission Church at Santa Clara University to honor the life of a popular, long-time campus leader who recently passed away, I found myself swept up in a vivid memory of this splendid Bay Area college campus, the oldest in California. It was here that on the morning of September 11, 2001, the university president gathered members of the campus community—students, faculty, and staff—in this same sanctuary to ponder, reflect, pray, and try to gain some understanding of the unthinkable tragedies that had taken place hours before in Pennsylvania, Virginia, and New York.

A strong thesis defense is crucial for any doctorate or graduate student. Although researching and writing about your thesis topic can be a Herculean effort, the work doesn't end there. The thesis presentation is a crucial part of the dissertation defense in many academic programs.

Tom Hanks, Eileen Collins, Steve Jobs, Halle Berry, George Lucas…all famous names of people who have attended a community college.

Yet, even though these and many others have attended a community college, they are usually overlooked as a first-choice when considering higher education.