The Community College of Baltimore County (CCBC) in Maryland has awarded Jamaican Daniel Harrison with this year’s annual President’s Distinguished Graduate Award for his “exemplary leadership and a commitment to help others”.
Harrison will be recognized for his achievement at the college’s virtual commencement ceremony on Saturday, June 5, where he will also give the commencement address at the event that is expected to attract the participation of 400 of the almost 3,000 graduates.
Harrison said that when he first came to CCBC, he was intimidated but hopeful. “I think that’s what made the experience so great. Between the two feelings, hope was greater than intimidation.” He now expects to graduate with a 4.0 GPA and said that receiving the title of the President’s Distinguished Graduate is “icing on the cake”.
Harrison’s original career goal was to become a pilot. But when the aviation training center he attended suffered a plane crash in 2019, his dreams were put on hold. He decided to pursue an education in the United States instead, enrolling in the General Studies Program at CCBC.
There, he became a serious student who successfully combined all of his campus activities, a part-time job, and academic pursuits. He also joined an impressive list of clubs and societies including the Student Government Association, the Honors Program, Phi Theta Kappa, the English Conversation Club, and the African Student Union.
Harrison also received a number of academic scholarships and will graduate with honors.
At the prestigious address, Harrison plans to use pilot metaphors to tell his fellow graduates that “the sky is limitless” and they can reach new heights if they pursue their own dreams. “Me standing there delivering that speech is really the epitome of following your dreams. I wouldn’t have been here if I never followed my dreams,” he said.
Harrison credits the International Student Services at the school with helping him to adjust to life in the United States. He also believes that participating in student government was critical in allowing him to become more confident, especially after he successfully advocated against proposed cuts to community college budgets by speaking to an audience that included the president of the college. He said, “It built my leadership so much.”
He plans to enroll at Morgan State University in the fall of 2021. He will study Electrical Engineering and resume his pursuit of becoming a commercial airline pilot. His interest in this career has never diminished, and he has already started flight training at Middle River Aviation.
