Meet Student Jason Montes-Padilla

Jason Montes-Padilla
Pronouns: He/Him/His
Age: 19

Be A Better Person

“Any sport I’ve done has taught me about life. I can take that with me into the real world and be a better person.”

Jason is a sophomore and student-athlete at SPSCC. “Basketball is an escape from the real world for me,” he said. “I take out all my emotions in basketball. It’s my passion because I’ve done it for so many years.”

Growing up, Jason and his family lived in Puerto Rico. “We were struggling financially, so that led to my dad becoming part of the military,” he said. When he was 10, Jason’s father was stationed in Alaska. “It was a pretty drastic change. Climate, meeting new people, the area, everything.”

Jason moved to Olympia in 2020 with a few other members of his basketball team. Coming from a small town in Alaska, Jason was surprised by all the new things he could experience. “It was different,” he said. “It was a small town, you don’t really see much. But here, you have just about everything.”

Through the Black Scholars Program, Jason has built many important relationships. “It’s been great. My good friend Joe Aguilar was part of the Black Scholars Program. I cherish the things he’s taught me,” he said. “That program has so much help whether it’s financial, emotional – anything you can think of Black Scholars has it for you.”

Jason never envisioned himself attending community college. “I thought community colleges were only for students who have been out of high school for a while and were trying to get back into education,” he said. “SPSCC proved me wrong.” He found that SPSCC was the perfect fit for him thanks to all the resources he has access to. “When choosing a college, I didn’t want to take student loans out at all, and due to my athletic scholarship and the resources at SPSCC, I’m able to study at a lower cost than four-year schools.”

“I’m enjoying the community that this college has. It’s a very tight-knit community and it’s diverse. I enjoy that a lot because you get to learn a lot from different people so it’s always fun.”

Learn more about:

• SPSCC Men's Basketball
• Black Scholars Program