Get to Know CSUSB Alumni Johnny Arredondo

Meet Johnny Arredondo! He is a CSUSB alumni from the Palm Desert Campus (PDC). Johnny graduated this fall, earning a bachelor’s degree in communication studies with a concentration in relational and organizational communication.

As a student, Johnny used his time at PDC to get involved on campus by participating in Paws Radio and working as a Student Success Coach for the Educational Opportunity Center (EOC).

At Paws Radio, Johnny served as Programming and Promotions Director and was part of a student team for more than a year. Paws Radio provides students the opportunity to gain hands-on experience in broadcasting, streaming technology, digital audio production, broadcast journalism, strategic social media production, public relations, media programming, digital marketing, and media promotion. 

“While I was at Paws Radio, we hosted events,” said Johnny. “We made sure that our radio station was kept up to date, so that students could tune in and listen to their favorite music, and most importantly, we helped students improve their technical skills.”

This was accomplished by teaching students how to use Adobe Creative Cloud, make videos, and create production-ready audio files.

Johnny has been a Student Success Coach for five months at EOC, which is a federally funded grant program designed to assist adults, ages 19 years old and older, who would like to enroll as first-time college students or who are former students seeking re-enrollment. 

“I think students should get involved as soon as they can, preferably their freshman year, because you don't realize what you're missing out on until you get involved,” said Johnny. “And it can be that you gain all of these new skills and resources, or it can just be that you meet a bunch of new people who are really cool and you make new friends.”

He added, “Not only did it improve my educational outcomes, being involved made me feel like I was part of the CSUSB community.”