We are back again to highlight Viking Alumni in our community and around the world to see how Vikings are doing amidst the global pandemic. We had the pleasure of sharing some time via Zoom with recent alumni, Samantha Oboro. She earned an AS in Biological Sciences at LBCC in 2020 and now is pursuing a nursing degree from CSU Long Beach. It is our pleasure to introduce you to this extraordinarily kind and insightful person.

Tell us how you got to LBCC:

Samantha sees LBCC as a second home after having migrated to the United States from Nigeria. Her journey began almost 3 years ago when she was only 17 years old.  She came to Long Beach, California where her uncle (who is also an LBCC alumnus) resides. It was her uncle who reached out to Samantha’s mother because he thought it would be a great opportunity for Samantha to attend LBCC. These connections allowed Samantha to have a smoother transition from Nigeria to Long Beach. In addition to having family around, she found that LBCC is a wonderful place for international students as there were many resources she was able to seek out on campus.

Tell us about your time here. Were you involved in any clubs or sports?

Samantha was very involved during her time at LBCC. She was in various clubs such as Teens & 20’s-a women’s support club, Spring Sing, and the Mini Grand Prix. As mentioned before, Samantha was a 2020 spring graduate and earned an AS degree in Biological Sciences. To earn her degree, she took many pre-nursing classes and especially enjoyed those of Dr. David Gail. She claims that LBCC has the best instructors for these courses and was excited when she eventually was able to tutor in pre-nursing classes that she had taken.

Did you receive any support from the LBCC Foundation? 

Samantha was honored to receive scholarships from the LBCC Foundation for both of her years of study. She was also a proud member of the President’s Ambassadors program for two semesters, and wishes she could have been involved longer!  This program was special in that it gave her leadership training as well as lasting friendships during her time at LBCC. Samantha also received scholarships that allowed her to invest in a new laptop for herself, scrubs for her nursing classes, and expensive textbooks that were required for her classes. This financial support was critical to her success and ability to focus her energy on her studies.

Where are you planning to go after your time at LBCC?

Due to her enriching experience at LBCC, Samantha is now in her dream nursing program at Cal State Long Beach. She wants to complete her nursing program and go to grad school to be a Nurse Practitioner. She is currently doing clinical rounds at the VA in Long Beach and is enjoying the hands-on experience she is getting.

How did your time at LBCC impact your current endeavors?

The areas of geriatric and medical-surgical nursing have recently piqued Samantha’s interest. However, because she has still much to learn about nursing while going through the program- she wants to keep her options open and is excited about all she has yet to learn on her journey. LBCC gave Samantha her very first job as a tutor at LBCC in general education and then pre-nursing courses. This experience led her to opportunities to tutor at CSULB because of the connections and referrals that were made. LBCC also allowed for Samantha to serve her last semester at LBCC as an ASCI leader. Samantha attributes all her current success to the various opportunities that were given to her by LBCC.  She is always available to tell her story as a way to give back to those that supported her on her journey.  Once a Viking, always a Viking!