Almost one year after her father died, Safiya Armstrong-Sarjeant took a deep breath and enrolled at Oklahoma City Community College (OCCC) — determined to fulfill the dream he never got to finish. This May, she will graduate with the class of 2025, carrying his legacy with her.

“My dad always wanted me to go to college,” she said. “He was trying to go to the college before he passed away, so almost a year to his death date is when I enrolled here. I’m just trying to make him proud.”

Armstrong-Sarjeant’s journey hasn’t been easy. Growing up, she had support from her father through martial arts — her father was her instructor. At a young age, “maybe five 5 or three 3 years old,” Armstrong-Sarjeant earned her white belt, which was also around the age when she was diagnosed with ADHD.

“That’s something I’ve struggled with all my life,” she said. “I also found out that I was dyslexic.”

Armstrong-Sarjeant had to attend summer school almost every year during elementary school because of her learning disabilities. It took her time to get to where she was comfortable with reading, she said. When she got to where she was reading on her own, and found material she enjoyed, her competency increased quickly.

At OCCC, Armstrong-Sarjeant is studying cybersecurity and will graduate with an associate degree in computer science.

She admits that her cybersecurity coursework, particularly coding, has been challenging.

“Having dyslexia and trying to code is not easy, but I feel like I’ve tried my best and I’ve pushed through when I had to,” she said. “It’s just something I’ve had to do all my life.”

Armstrong-Sarjeant’s father also instilled in her a sense of service and taught her the importance of giving back. Following his example, she worked at the OCCC Food Pantry, which has served the campus community since 2018 by providing free food and hygiene products to students. Through this work, Armstrong-Sarjeant helps ensure that students have the support they need to stay focused on their education.

“He really opened my eyes to the world,” she said. “My dad always preached service whenever he was alive, and so that felt like the next natural step was to work at the food pantry so I can continue giving back to my community and proceeding with my dad’s service.”

Armstrong-Sarjeant will be transferring to the University of Central Oklahoma to study graphic design. She hopes to have a career that combines her expertise in cybersecurity with graphic design, so she can make infographics, posters and other media for the community to keep people informed and safe.

Support future students like Safiya by donating to the OCCC Foundation. Your gift helps make their success possible. Click here to give today.