Meet a Mentor: James Armijo

High School: Santa Maria High School, Santa Maria, CA
College: Occidental College, Los Angeles, CA
What are you up to? Director of Customer Support, Kareo. Helping to build the support organization of a healthcare IT company focused on making the business of running a medical practice simple, so doctors can focus on practicing in small, community and care oriented practices delivering the best level of care without sacrificing their business success.

What does it mean to you to be a mentor?

Being a mentor means taking time to give back to someone, often less fortunate than yourself, and gaining the opportunity to learn from them as well. In the twenty-first century, the key to success is most often human capital; unfortunately, many aspiring college students lack the social networks needed to build the human capital necessary to be successful college applicants. Luckily, technology and BetterGrads have built a bridge to overcome that obstacle.

What do you wish you had known about college when you were in high school?

I wish I would have known the importance of life outside the classroom-social connections, internships, building the skills to be an independent adult-and the opportunity that college offers to build those skills before entering the ‘real world’.

Why did you want to get involved in this program?

Philanthropy in general, and education in particular, is the focus of my efforts outside of work and family. BetterGrads aligns its goals with my interests perfectly.