Student Speaker

Arya Shadan
Class of 2024 Student Speaker

Arya Shadan was born and raised in the Bay Area. He began his journey at Cañada College during the fall 2022 semester, pursuing his goal of transferring to a four-year university.

Throughout his life, Arya has consistently dedicated himself to serving others, which has assisted in shaping his values and character. As a scout, he achieved the rank of Eagle Scout, collaborating with his community to develop into a servant leader devoted to empowering progress and leadership. On day one at Cañada College, Arya embraced his passion for leadership by becoming involved with the Associated Students of Cañada College. Here, he learned the nuances of fostering representation for student voices through service, leadership, and engagement. As a student senator, Arya led Cañada’s first-ever National Coming Out Day, inviting the LGBTQIA+ community to reflect upon their lived experiences in society. Arya also worked with the district Student Trustee to write policy that established equitable pay for student participation on community college campuses. By the end of his first year, Arya campaigned and became the Commissioner of Finances of the Associated Students, ensuring financial support for student and campus programming.

In addition to being a student leader on campus, Arya has an avid passion for learning. During his first year, he became involved in the Honors Transfer Program, which provided him the opportunity to delve deeper into course material. The honors community inspired Arya to examine layers of coursework through research. His research journey culminated after presenting on comparative literature and the Women Life Freedom Movement of Iran in the Bay Honors Consortium at Stanford University. To this day, Arya continues to build upon his passion for research through political advocacy. Arya is transferring to UCLA and will attend law school.

Arya is grateful for the support and guidance of the staff, faculty, and peers within the Cañada community. Throughout his educational journey, Arya has always felt that Cañada College has become his home away from home. Here, he discovered the essence of belonging to a community that embraces us for who we are, which inspired his voice to take its shape.