To whom it may concern
It gives me great delight to write this letter in support of Ms. Angelisa Miranda. I first met Angie in January 2011, when she became a student in my Biological Anthropology course. She performed very well in that course, earning a grade of “A” and finishing in the top 5% of her cohort.
Angie and I had many opportunities to interact that semester, and I found her to be an extremely intelligent and motivated individual with a strong artistic streak and sense of self. You can imagine my delight when I learned that she had signed up for a short summer trip to Peru that I had organized for May 2011. Perhaps you know the expression: “If you really want to get to know someone, travel with them.” I must say, traveling with Angie on that trip was an absolute delight. She is well-balanced and extremely personable, and her presence made the entire tour (which included 6 other students of mine as well as participants from other colleges) that much more fun. Angie is an amazing story-teller, and I can recall more than one time when she was relating a story from her life and the entire tour group was quiet and engrossed. Her tales were always insightful, often hilarious, and consistently detailed, so that I could easily feel myself a part of the situation she was describing.
After that tour, I encountered Angie often on the Moorpark College campus, for she was an engaged and extremely appreciated member of the Writing Center. There, she helped students organize their thoughts and compose and improve their term papers and other assignments. I often sent my students to her, knowing that they would find support and affirmation regardless of their writing level. Angie displayed a genuine empathy for the students she worked with while holding them all to high standards and doing all that she could to help them gain confidence and improve their writing skills.
In addition to these activities, Angie completed her studies at Moorpark College and then at Arizona State University, where she earned her B.A. in Film and Media Studies. Along the way, she also found the time to earn her TESOL/TESL/TEFL Certification, to participate in and present at a number of conferences and workshops, and to publish an article. Clearly, Angie is a highly motivated and dynamic individual who could, in my opinion, do anything she wants.
What makes Angie even more special in my eyes is that what she wants to do is to help other people find themselves and their own paths. This desire springs from her own personal story, and thus reflects who she is and how she has become this person. Her many outstanding qualities, combined with her deep empathy and compassion for others, PLUS an extraordinary artistic streak, ensure that Angie will be both a dynamic and well-regarded member of your program and that she will subsequently be a counselor who will attract and be able to work with a wide variety of clients. I should add that I have always found Angie to be a person of deep integrity who puts others before herself (without becoming trampled in the process).
I hope that you can see from these few lines that I hold Angie in the highest regard; indeed, I consider her to be one of the most gifted and innately talented, and warm and compassionate students, that I have encountered in my 29 years of teaching. If we had more like her, perhaps we wouldn’t need therapists and counselors. The next best thing would be to have people such as Angie, who are dedicated to improving the lives of her fellows and to truly making the world a better, more compassionate, and fun place.
Please do not hesitate to contact me if I can provide you with any additional information about Angie Hoover; I would be happy to share what I know.
Sincerely,
John R. Baker, Dr.phil.
Professor of Anthropology
Moorpark College
Contact information available upon request
Angelisa Miranda 