Owens Outstanding Grad Vargas Checks College Diploma Off Bucket List
Getting a college degree was on Theresa Vargas’ bucket list, and when the company she worked at for 16 years closed its doors, she figured this was as good a time as any to check that off her list.
Now 60 years old, Vargas will graduate in spring 2025 with her associate degree in Health Information Technology (HIT). She was also given the program’s HIT Spirit Award. The Holland native was surprised and honored to receive the award.
“That’s just my personality, come in here and keep a positive attitude for everybody and keep the class positive,” Vargas said. “It’s a very special award. I’m very honored that I got chosen.”
From being an upbeat presence in the classroom to volunteering for extra activities, Vargas said getting involved and not simply going to class was important for her academic success.
She originally started in the nursing program at Owens and nearly made it all the way through before deciding it wasn’t the right fit for her. She didn’t want to waste all of her classes and credits, so she decided to take a look at Health Information Technology.
“It was meant to be because I really enjoyed this better,” Vargas said. “I’m still in the medical field, which I like, but it’s more involvement with all of the healthcare professions, the doctors, the nurses, the labs. You have to look at everything to code.”
She was first interested in just medical coding, but then she realized how much more she could do with a HIT degree.
“I didn’t realize how many doors open through the Health Information Technology program,” Vargas said. “If you get into coding, you’re just doing coding. With HIT, you can get into the registries, you can get into coding, there are so many other things you can get into.”
Next up for Vargas is passing the state certification exam and getting a job in the HIT field.
As for what’s next up on her bucket list, Vargas isn’t sure. She’s going to enjoy checking this one off the list.
“I’ll miss (Owens), but it feels wonderful to be done,” Vargas said.
Learn More About Health Information Technology (HIT)
Published April 2025