Salutatorian - Los Angeles Southwest College

Southwest t Grad statst sto several prestigious universities, including UCLA,UC Davis and UC Irvine. Rodney earned a full academicscholarship to UC Berkeley where he will studylaw in the fall with aspirations of becoming a litigationattorney. UC Berkeley also offered him another scholarshipopportunity through its Miller Scholars Program.If he accepts, he will be conducting communityresearch in the area of assisting disadvantaged entrepreneursto obtain small business resources.“Once I go to law school, I am going to get the generalknowledge, but I am always going to evolve and learn,like civil rights law, constitutional law, corporate law,entertainment law, so I think I will always be learning,”said Rodney.Salutatorian: Rodney D. ClaytonDOB: October 27, 1977Age: 35GPA: 3.86With a 3.86 cumulative GPA, Rodney D. Claytonearned the college’s second highest marks for thegraduating class of 2013.He is originally from Pittsburgh, PA where he is theoldest of six siblings. Rodney graduated from CarrickHigh School in 1995 and then moved to Los Angeles in2006. Upon his arrival to California, Rodney openeda restaurant in Inglewood in 2008. Unfortunately, hisrestaurant folded during the height of the Recession,which led him to Southwest in the fall 2010.Rodney is a high achiever. He made the Dean’s andPresident’s list for his stellar grades. He was acceptedAlthough UCLA was his initial college choice, Southwest’sDr. Angelita Figueroa Salas, TRIO STEM coordinatorand counselor, had a major impact on Rodney’sdecision to go to Berkeley instead.“When I first came to Southwest, I was really drivento go to UCLA, but once I became part of TRIO, Dr.Salas – who is Berkeley alum – started telling me aboutBerkeley. When I had the chance to go to the campus,I knew it was right. She [Dr. Salas] helped me withgetting in touch with people on campus, and the wholetransition. She’s been helping me a lot with meetingdeadlines and different resources. She’s also a transferstudent to Berkeley, so she let me know all of the differentaspects that would be helpful to me.”To secure the second highest GPA, Rodney studiedhard and stayed committed to school.“I studied a lot and stayed focused. Basically, I cut allties with distractions. I set my life up to have limiteddistractions. My roommates were a distraction, so Imoved out.(cont.)class s of 2013

Southwest t Grad statst sWhere I was working at the time was a distraction, soI needed something more flexible. I made everythingaround school. I made school my number one priority.”Rodney credits his academic discipline to his mother.“I learned my work ethic from my mom. She is a verydedicated and driven individual.”When he’s not studying or working in the TRIO Scholarsoffice, Rodney likes to travel.“I travel a lot. Any time I have off long enough, I travel.I’ve been to D.C., Atlanta, New York, Philadelphia,Baltimore, and the Bay Area. I’ve been to Tijuana acouple of times,” said Rodney. “I’m getting a passportpretty soon because my birthday is October 27 andmy best friend’s is October 29, so we’re only two daysapart and we are always trying to find somewhere to gofor our birthdays. This year we’re going to try to go toBarcelona.”Rodney took his community service a step furtherand began hosting free workshops and seminars in hisrestaurant for inspiring entrepreneurs who wanted toopen their own business.He has also worked with the Small Business Administrationand managed a hub in Inglewood to helppeople open small businesses.“I was working with the Small Business Administrationto help people since they were only offeringconventional products to poor people who didn’t havethe credit scores or the collateral. I was trying to findalternative ways to help. I’m very big on giving back.My ideology is like philanthropy. I feel like once youmake it somewhere, God has put you in a better positionto help people who were just like you.”Rodney is looking forward to opening an upscale SoulFood restaurant after he graduates from law school.On his proudest moment in life, Rodney says:“I am really proud that I opened my own restaurantbecause I did it by myself. It was my first business andit really shaped me. I wasn’t really a talker, but [thebusiness] made me more personable, more outgoing,and it gave me a lot more confidence in myself.”He continued:“When I had my restaurant, people in Inglewood andyoung guys from the neighborhood would ask me howI opened my restaurant and I would give them thebreakdown on how to write a business plan and how topresent it to banks.”class s of 2013