This Panther has a passion for fashion and a desire to help everyone feel included.
Hyang “Sunshine” Archibeque is a business major who plans to transfer to Colorado State University in Pueblo or Fort Collins after graduating in 2024. She wants to earn a bachelor’s degree in apparel and merchandising.
“I love the way clothes can make people feel – the fashion, the colors, the campiness. I discovered (fashion) my freshman year of high school and it made me unapologetically myself,” she said.
Archibeque said Pueblo Community College proved to be a good place to begin her college career due to its affordability and smaller class sizes. She is part of PCC’s TRIO Student Support Services program that offers additional support for first-generation, low-income, and disabled students.
“They keep up with you and keep you accountable,” she said.
People on the Pueblo campus are used to seeing Archibeque just about everywhere. She quickly got involved in campus clubs and activities such as the President’s Leadership Program, Phi Beta Lambda (Future Business Leaders of America), Associated Student Government, Art Club, and the Colorado Space Grant Consortium.
“I also really like all the Hispanic culture events,” she said. “I never really knew about that growing up.”
(PCC has been a Hispanic-Serving Institution for 30 years and is home to El Movimiento, an exhibit about the Chicano Movement in Pueblo and Colorado.)
Archibeque wants to use her business education to start a company that makes modest apparel. Spurred by a discussion in her accounting class, she’s also interested in creating a nonprofit that assists single parents.
“My mom was a single parent for a time. I want to make a place for parents and kids – someplace you can look forward to (visiting),” she said.
For now, however, she’s focused on her final year at PCC and serving as an unofficial recruiter: She’s already helped three friends enroll at the college.
“I’m a huge advocate for PCC,” she said. “I like how it’s community based. It’s more engaging.”
