Oct. 24, 2022, GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. -- Deavondre Jones knew that enrolling at Grand Rapids Community College would give him useful credits that would transfer to his dream school: Columbia College Chicago. But he wanted more than that.
“A young guy from Benton Harbor saw endless possibilities,” he said of his time at GRCC. “It was valuable because I made it valuable. I refused to only get a transcript when I left. I wanted connections and new perspectives that would help me on my journey.”
Start at GRCC and go anywhere. Every former student has a story to tell about how GRCC gave them the education and opportunity to be successful.
Jones found mentors and friends on campus, counting his membership in leadership development organization Alpha Beta Omega and working in the Student Life Office and as an orientation leader among his favorite memories.
Also among those fond memories: “Running to catch the bus every day because I didn’t have a car and meeting so many people who said I helped their GRCC experience in some way.”
Jones continued at Columbia after graduating from GRCC in 2013 with an associate degree in marketing. He attended on a Presidential Scholarship and earned his bachelor’s degree in business, management and marketing.
“GRCC business and math courses, specifically accounting, prepared me more than I could ever understand at the time,” he said.
Jones, the father of 6-year-old Brayden, founded DanceSpire, which works to accelerate the adoption of standardized hip hop education for dance programs, and the digital marketing company DanceSpire Agency.
He also teaches at Hope College and Michigan State and Oakland universities. He serves on the Michigan Action Plan for Fatherhood Involvement and volunteers for the West Michigan “Dads Count!” collective.
He still looks to learn something “from every room I walk into.”
“GRCC is what you make it – so is your experience in the world,” he said. “GRCC is a low-cost, high-value practice for your next step. Don’t waste it.”
Let GRCC help you start your story. The first chapter starts at grcc.edu/apply