Rhealyn Valenciano

My friends describe me as ambitious, and I think that’s pretty accurate. When I applied to go to KCC I knew exactly what I wanted to do. My dream was to become a business owner of a Filipino restaurant. Of course, that meant that I wanted to get my degree in business administration.

But when I talked with my counselor during my first semester, I decided that I needed to start with the practical, essential parts of running a business. So, I chose to major in accounting. I worked hard for two years and last Spring, I graduated with a major in accounting and a discovery about myself- I loved numbers! I’m great at bookkeeping, and I found a welcome surprise after I graduated.

While I was studying for my degree I realized that I could use several of the business principles I was learning for my personal finances as well. Now, I’m a young adult with a balanced bank account and organized approach to life.

College isn’t a straight pathway for most students, and life after graduation is about making things fall into place. Once I graduated from KCC, I knew that I wanted to study more about running a business, but Kauai is my home. I don’t want to go off to college somewhere else, and I needed money to live in the meantime. With my accounting degree, I got a job as a bookkeeper and tax service preparer. I love putting to use what I’ve learned, but my plan is still to run my own business. So I went back to my counselors at KCC to figure out how I could keep learning at home. They worked with me and now I’m taking distance learning courses from West Oahu at home, and I’m on track to get my bachelor’s degree in business administration by 2020.

I’m taking the next big step towards my restaurant, and I can already smell the food!