Quick facts about Ben de Guzman Degree: BA, Spanish and mass communications Currently: Director, Mayor’s Office on Asian and Pacific Islander Affairs, Washington, D.C.; member, Pilipino American Alumni Chapter
What was your life like at Cal?
I fully immersed myself into campus life and am glad that UC Berkeley has top-caliber offerings in so many different arenas. In the classroom, I was try-lingual: I “tried” to speak English, Spanish, and Tagalog. I took a two-year course at Berkeley and got accepted into a language immersion program in the Philippines. I was able to explore my identity through organizations like the Pilipino American Alliance, where I learned to be a student organizer and fight for racial and educational equity issues. As an athlete, I competed as a member of the Cal Men’s Volleyball Club and ran the volleyball program at Cal Intramural Sports. I am eternally grateful for the wide array of experiences Cal gave me.