After high school, following a delay Hannah described as due to a lack of confidence, she decided to “just dive in head-first,” and determined that she would not let anything stop her from achieving a degree. How did she do it? Hannah replied: "Part dedication to education and part the extreme privilege to be able to dedicate an unusual amount of time towards work and education."
Through her work, Hannah went on to become a member of Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society, a 2019 Coca-Cola Academic Team Scholar, while also serving as the Club Z President. Participating in the MCCCD Student Public Policy Forum “where I collaborated with other civically-engaged students” and got to “network with our country’s leaders in Washington D.C.” has been a highlight of her time at PVCC. Additionally, Hannah served her community while being a catalyst for positive social change as a Campus Voter Registration Advocate. She initiated the successful “Use Your Voice, Use Your Vote” get-out-the-vote campaign on the PVCC campus. Hannah stated: “I am proud of each student I helped register to vote and the candidate forum I hosted in which PVCC students got to showcase their civically-engaged mindsets.”
Hannah credited this impressive list of accomplishments as coming from a “willingness to learn from mistakes — and amazing mentors…I am leaving PVCC a better person than who I was when I started, and for that, I will be eternally grateful.”
Hannah graduated from ASU with a degree in Philosophy (Morality, Politics and Law) and a concurrent degree in Political Science. Hannah shared “I had the life changing opportunity to be chosen for the Arizona Legislative Internship” in the Arizona State Senate with the Democratic Policy staff. During this internship, Hannah realized that the job she wanted didn't require a law degree, so she “jumped right in after graduation in 2021.”
Since the internship, Hannah has worked a few different jobs in the Legislature, from a member's assistant to research staffer. Hannah is currently back in the Democratic policy office, in the House of Representatives. “I look back at my dreams of going to law school and working for the UN with much fondness, and maybe those things are still in my future, but for now I'm honored to be in a career where I serve the constituents of Arizona as a public servant and I love what I do. I wouldn't be where I am today without my education and my mentors from PVCC.”
Hannah takes to heart this line from Lin-Manuel Miranda’s musical Hamilton:
“I am not throwing away my shot!"