A former elementary school teacher, Teresa Cavazos was ready to make a career change. With a passion for plants and hydroponic systems, she decided to enroll in Kwantlen’s Greenhouse Nursery Production Diploma Program.

Despite being a busy mother of two teenagers and working a part-time job, Cavazos managed to maintain a 4.0+ Grade Point Average (GPA) — the highest GPA in her discipline. This considerable achievement earned Cavazos Kwantlen’s Academic Award of Merit, which she says “at that precise moment, was a huge sigh of relief.”

“Last semester was a very busy and stressful time for me,” said Cavazos, who is on the Dean’s Honour Roll. “I was doing 18 credits, working part-time at Kwantlen’s Institute for Sustainable Horticulture and was facing an unexpected situation and expense in relation to one of my children. I am very thankful to the Kwantlen Foundation and its donors. You never know in what way or just how much such awards can touch another person's life.”

Cavazos is set to graduate this spring (2012) and, after gaining a few years of industry experience, she plans to open her own plant and garden business.

Kwantlen's Institute for Sustainable Horticulture (ISH) is a partnership between academia, B.C.'s horticultural industries and the community to support British Columbia in meeting demands for a higher-level of sustainability and environmental responsibility from horticulture, agriculture and urban landscapes. For more information please visit www.kwantlen.ca/ish.