When Montgomery County Community College alumna, Blessing Osazuwa, ’20, looked back on her career as a student at Columbia University, she said she was grateful for her time at MCCC, because it laid the foundation for her to be successful at the Ivy League level.

“My experience at Montco really prepared me, not just educationally,” said Osazuwa. “Columbia accepted 50 of my credits, even in my major. The classes at Montco are so advanced, especially music. It was like a seamless transition. It was amazing for me.”

Today the 27-year-old from Narberth is working as a community organizer at POWER Interfaith, a nonprofit organization representing more than 50 unique religious congregations in Southeastern and Central Pennsylvania. Her focus is on bringing about education and housing justice.

She credits MCCC for giving her a fresh start and opening doors she didn’t know were possible.

Mustang Beginnings

Before coming to MCCC, Osazuwa, a first-generation American, endured many hardships while she was growing up, including homelessness, as well as losing both her mother and younger sister to sickle-cell anemia. After high school, she started college at a four-year institution where she was sexually assaulted. She dropped out of school and worked several jobs until she decided to enroll at MCCC.

The College became a clean slate for her. She would start her day at 4 a.m. to catch the bus to the Blue Bell Campus from Drexel Hill and arrive at 7 a.m. She typically spent time practicing in the piano lab before her classes began. She’d often stay late studying in the library or back in the music labs.

As an MCCC student, Osazuwa was actively involved on campus. She made the Dean’s List, was a member of Phi Theta Kappa, the international honors society for two-year colleges and sang in the chamber choir. In 2019, she received the Billijoe Loeben Music Scholarship and the Montco Foundation Scholarship.

In 2020, Osazuwa was named one of four MCCC students selected for the 2019-2020 All-Pennsylvania Academic Team.

“My experience at Montco, especially being around people of all walks of life was so valuable to going to Columbia, because I felt enriched,” she said. “As opposed to coming straight from high school, it gave me an extra sense of belonging. I just loved to tell everyone I went to Montgomery County Community College.”

Ivy League Bound

Osazuwa graduated summa cum laude with a music Associate of Arts degree. Due to the pandemic, she transferred to Columbia online in the fall of 2020. She enrolled as a music and African American studies major in the School of General Studies, which is intended for students with nontraditional backgrounds who, after a year or more break in their educational paths, are now seeking a rigorous, traditional Ivy League education.

Overall, Osazuwa’s experience as a student was very positive. A typical class on campus was very similar to the ones she had at MCCC, she said.

“I would say it’s not that much different from Montco in the sense that everyone is in the class to learn,” she said. “You have a professor who’s knowledgeable and dedicated to the subject. I would say there is a level of expectation that is very high. I felt well prepared for that being at Montco because the classes at Montco were also challenging.”

Osazuwa remembers receiving a C on one of her first English papers and feeling disappointed. Yet for the next paper she remembered the effort put in at MCCC and the skills she learned and earned As from then on as a result.

“I used to be in the library on Blue Bell Campus until 10 p.m. studying,” she said. “The professors at Montco, especially from my experience being in music, were so well accomplished and well-rounded they just know what they’re doing and what they’re talking about. I learned so much. I felt really prepared going in.”

Osazuwa remembers having imposter syndrome at first about being a transfer student at an Ivy League University, but the feeling quickly went away.

“What I realized is that in reality, everyone is the same,” she said. “You have those abilities in you, if you develop them.”

The next year, she moved to New York to study on campus and received the $20,000 a year Mary Seaman Memorial Scholarship.

She also joined the a cappella singing group “Nonsequitur.”

“I actually auditioned a year prior online. It’s very interesting,” she said. “The group was great. We did seasonal concerts on campus, performed at campus events and had gigs around the city.”

A highlight of singing with the group was performing during her senior year for an audience that included former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and former United States Attorney General Eric Holder.

“Secretary Clinton walked up to us and said ‘I need to take a photo with you all. I love the song you sang.’ She came up to us. We didn’t ask if we could we meet her. She walked up to us,” said Osazuwa. “Eric Holder too was so nice. Everyone at the party wanted to talk to him but he just wanted to talk to us.”

Life in the Real World

After completing her degree from Columbia in the spring of 2023, Osazuwa moved back to Pennsylvania and began working at POWER.

Her focus for the last year has been on equitable education funding and promoting social justice. When working in Harrisburg, she makes a point to tell people she’s a community college graduate.

“I tell them community college is where people grow,” she said.

When not working as a community organizer, Osazuwa is still recording music, and her work can be found under “Blessing Osazuwa” on every streaming platform. She gave a special mention to MCCC faculty members David Ivory and Michael Kelly for their role in her education.

“They nurtured my love for music by encouraging me to stay on the path, giving me individual help when I needed it,” she said. “I was new to music production and technology. With their wealth of knowledge of the business of music, just imparting that knowledge, giving us opportunities to explore and hone our crafts … they just have always been there. Even after Montco, I send them my music, and they are so encouraging. I’ve learned so much from them.”

When asked if she had any advice for future generations of Mustangs looking to follow in her footsteps, she encouraged students to take advantage of the resources available at the College.

“There are so many opportunities to get involved. Be open to those new experiences,” she said. “They can really change your life.”