Growing up in Turkey and Hungary, Rahime Demirci learned about living with people from a variety of cultures and backgrounds. She wants to use that experience as the MiraCosta College’s new student trustee.
Demirci, an 19-year-old Oceanside resident, was born in Istanbul, Turkey and her family moved to Hungary when she was 10 years old. She said her interest in promoting diversity, equity and inclusion as a student trustee comes from her experience growing up.
“When I first moved to Hungary, I felt I wasn’t included. It just felt very foreign to me, not just the school system but the lifestyle,” she said. “Including someone in their community is impactful to the individual. If students feel more included in the campus atmosphere, they for sure will succeed at MiraCosta College.”
Demirci’s father is Turkish and her mother is from Kazakhstan. She speaks English, Turkish and Hungarian fluently, and speaks some Russian.
Her parents taught English, and she attended bilingual schools in Turkey and Hungary. She said her school in Hungary had a diverse student population with people from all over the world attending.
Demirci’s family came to the United States in 2022, and she attended Sage Creek High School. Demirci said she wasn’t sure what career she wanted to pursue, considering options ranging from political science to flight school. She decided to attend MiraCosta College and discovered a passion for mathematics and economics.
“MiraCosta gave me an opportunity to explore what I really like and connect with my major a lot more,” Demirci said. “If I had gone to a four-year school directly, I would have struggled to find my place.”
Demirci arrived at MiraCosta in Fall 2023 and soon became actively involved in student government. She served as director of legislative affairs for ASG and was a delegate to the Student Senate for California Community Colleges. She will be serving as Region X Vice Chair for the next school year.
“Through that experience, I was able to understand how student advocacy worked,” she said. “It opened up another skill that I didn’t know I had of leadership skills and advocacy.”
Demirci plans to graduate from MiraCosta College in Spring 2025 and hopes to earn a law degree and open her own law firm.
She encouraged potential students at MiraCosta College to get involved in campus activities as she did. In addition to student government, Demirci also played on the MiraCosta rugby team.
“MiraCosta has a lot to offer, more than you think,” Demirci said. “Don’t think twice and join our community.”
MiraCosta College’s Board of Trustees is made up of regional business and community leaders who volunteer their time and expertise to ensure the college’s institutional initiatives remain at the forefront of the higher education experience.
The MiraCosta College Student Trustee is elected annually by their peers to serve as a student representative and member of the MiraCosta College Board of Trustees. Demirci joins the seven other elected members of the Board of Trustees who each represent and reside in a specific area of the college district. The MiraCosta College district includes the communities of Oceanside, Carlsbad, Encinitas, Cardiff, Olivenhain, Leucadia, Solana Beach, Rancho Santa Fe, Del Mar, and parts of Carmel Valley.
