Countdown to Commencement Fall 2025: Katherine Tran on Embracing Inclusivity

Katherine Tran graduates this December with plans to become an occupational therapist. Photo courtesy of Katherine Tran.

Katherine Tran, ’25 Kinesiology, first learned about the Successful Postsecondary Access & Related Transition Activities for Neurodiverse Students Occupational Career Life Studies (SPARTANS OCLS) Program while seeking internship opportunities in her second year at San José State. An aspiring occupational therapist, Tran was hired to serve as a peer mentor assisting students with intellectual, developmental and physical disabilities who enrolled in SJSU courses through Open University.

The experience opened her eyes, both to the potential and promise of OCLS students, many of whom were educated in special education environments, but also to the impact that inclusivity in mainstream classes can have on all students and faculty members.

“Peer mentors and mentees alike definitely take a lot of time to get to know each other and grow in ways that prepare both sides with skills that they can carry on beyond the semester,” says Tran, who graduates this December. “With the framework that we are providing mentees in terms of moral support and services for in the academic, social and professional realms, it’s a really great learning experience for everyone.” 

Tran has also stepped up into the peer mentor lead role, where she mentors other peer mentors and supports the overall operations of the program. As a peer mentor, Tran supported SPARTANS OCLS students in the pursuit of their chosen fields, which included attending classes alongside them, helping them apply self-management strategies and develop self-advocacy strategies, and modeling appropriate social etiquette in academic and professional environments and providing observations and collaborated with the program director, Associate Professor of Kinesiology Jihyun Lee, and coordinator, Assistant Professor of Special Education Sudha Krishnan.

“We set up the program for students with intellectual disabilities, and the experience transformed the peer mentors as well,” says Lee.

In addition to her work with the OCLS program, Tran served as an Empower Mentor for the Center for Asian Pacific Islander Student Excellence (CAPISE), where she supported first-year students with the transition to life on campus. 

Like OCLS, CAPISE’s mentoring program brings together SJSU students who are trained to support their peers who are new to university life. Tran found that serving as a mentor in both programs helped her finetune her listening, problem-solving and communication skills.

“At CAPISE, we focused a lot on understanding cultural backgrounds and how different experiences from your upbringing can impact how you navigate your college experience, whether that’s because of socioeconomic situations or your educational family background,” she says. “With the OCLS program, some of the students had community college experience already, so we focused more on supporting students with varying degrees of disability.”

Both experiences reinforced Tran’s passion for helping others, strengthening her goal of becoming an occupational therapist focused on inclusivity. 

“The general public is not as informed about how the various policies, services and areas of support that are typically provided in elementary, middle and high school don’t always carry on into college,” she says. 

She explains that for students with disabilities requiring individualized education plans (IEPs), families may be accustomed to a level of care or accommodation that is harder to locate in a higher education setting. While accommodations and services do exist at San José State, Tran says that programs like SPARTANS OCLS will hopefully increase their visibility.

As she prepares to cross the stage this December, one of Tran’s biggest takeaways from her time at San José State is a focus on intentionality.

“I’m technically in my fourth and a half year at SJSU,” she says. “A quote I really like is ‘nothing delayed is denied.’ It’s okay to take some time to figure out how to solve a problem or some gray area in your life. It’s okay to take a minute to do it thoroughly, rather than conform to whatever expectations there are. I’m glad I took the time to figure out what I needed to get to this point in my education and professional journey.”

SJSU commencement ceremonies take place December 17-18 at the Provident Credit Union Event Center. Learn more about commencement.