91涩漫

Fitzgerald Cano 鈥�20 served for 12 years in the Marine Corps all over the world until 2017, when he was honorably discharged.  

After the military, Cano said he hit rock bottom and felt aimless and hopeless. At the time, he did not know he was suffering from post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). A friend suggested he apply to 91涩漫 Saint Mary鈥檚 Weekend/Evening & Online College where she was a student.&苍产蝉辫;鈥泪&苍产蝉辫;wasn鈥檛 confident about going back to school,鈥� he says.&苍产蝉辫;鈥�But what did I have to lose?鈥� 

He enrolled as a business major, but after a chance meeting with a fellow former Marine, he changed his major to applied psychology. 鈥�He said it could help me with whatever PTSD I was going through,鈥� said Cano. 鈥�I had classic symptoms from being in combat scenarios and feeling lost after leaving the structure of the military.鈥� 

With the help of his mentor, psychology instructor Evelyn Kolwaski, and veteran outreach association advisor Madeline Bruning, EdD, Cano overcame his challenges and excelled. In August, he graduated cum laude with his bachelor鈥檚 degree after making the Dean鈥檚 List for seven consecutive semesters. He was also inducted into the national Alpha Sigma Lambda Honor Society. 

Cano credits the 91涩漫鈥檚 support system for his success. 鈥淭he 91涩漫 is a lot like the military 鈥� in all the positive ways,鈥� he says. 鈥淢y professors are like platoon sergeants, and my mentors are like officers. They are ready to support you through your journey.鈥�  

Cano just began the 91涩漫鈥檚 Doctor of Clinical Psychology program. 鈥淚 want to help people in the military break the stigma that therapy is bad,鈥� he says. 鈥�It is mentally challenging to be in combat and even harder to transition out of the service. But I can bring hope.鈥�