GRADUATION 2025: COCC graduate ready for new chapter, but says leaving is bittersweet

Published 11:00 pm Wednesday, June 11, 2025

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COCC graduate Lillian Warpinski, stands barefoot on the grass on the COCC campus in Bend Monday afternoon. Lillian Warpinski is graduating with an Associate of Arts Oregon Transfer degree and is transferring to the University of Illinois. She saved up her own money to get her Certified Nursing Assistant certification at age 16, became a nationally registered EMT at 18, and is a COCC Foundation scholarship recipient. 6-9-25 Andy Tullis/The Bulletin

Lillian Warpinski didn’t plan on taking classes at Central Oregon Community College, but she’s had a busy two years.

She has taken at least 12 credits per term for the past two years and has a nearly 4.0 GPA. She’s involved with undergraduate research, a psychology club and has had a part-time job on the side.

Warpinski originally planned to become a physician’s assistant, but discovered a love for data analysis and statistics during her time at COCC. In high school, Warpinski hated math because she was never taught the foundations.

“So at COCC, I was able to go all the way back to the very beginning of math and then really get the basics down. And I just loved it. I love things that have like clear-cut answers,” Warpinski, 21, said. “I love problem solving. So I love to be given a problem and figure out how to solve it and have a formula to solve it and that is the answer. No doubt about it. That’s the answer. That’s really satisfying to my brain.”

Warpinski will be moving back to Wisconsin, where she grew up, to work this summer before heading to Chicago in the fall to attend the University of Illinois Chicago Honors College to study mathematics and research methods.

“We love Bend, but it’s kind of, you know, given us all that we asked for, given us what we needed,” she said. “And so we’re ready to move on to the next thing and head back home.”

Warpinski loves learning and began taking classes at COCC for something new to do after moving to Bend. Warpinski got her Certified Nursing Assistant license at the age of 16, and became a nationally registered EMT when she was 18. At COCC, Warpinski’s been involved in the Central Oregon Psychology Enthusiasts club and the Friday learning community, where a group of students come together to talk and share about different topics. She’s been a research assistant in the undergraduate research lab for two terms. She’s also a fellow for a research project focusing on binge drinking in Central Oregon. Warpinski expects to be part of the project for the next few years.

Of the Friday learning community, she said, “It’s just sort of people hanging out and learning through engaging with their peers and having fun conversations or important conversations or whatever. And then at the end of each term, we do this showcase. You know, we lure people in with snacks and then they get kind of attached. That’s what happened to me anyway. It was always a good way to go. I started in research methods and I was, like, these people are really cool.”

She’s loved her time at COCC and the professors who have taught her and helped her realize what she wanted to do.

“This is such a fantastic school. The opportunities that it’s given me and … the professors here have totally changed my life and led me onto this path,” she said. “Maybe I just had the wrong impression of what a community college was when I came here. But I came here and started taking classes and I was, like, I feel like some of these instructors are overqualified. Like, they just are such amazing people and so accomplished and just so wonderful at what they do.”

She’s grateful for the financial support of the COCC Foundation.

“I do not come from a family that could have paid for my college tuition or anything like that,” she said. “They support me in so many other ways, but they just can’t financially. So to be able to come here and get the opportunity not only to have the first chunk of my education be more affordable, but also with the scholarships and stuff that they offer with the COCC scholarship from the COCC Foundation is really just amazing.”

Warpinski is interested in working in data science and research methods, and possibly in research consulting. She’s also interested in becoming a professor herself.

Though she’s starting a new chapter, Warpinski said it’s bittersweet to leave. She advised other students to find a club to be involved in.

“Being more involved in your campus, I think is really important for so many things, just to have people to lean on and have people to bounce ideas off of and just to grow your community and network of people that you have around you and form those relationships is really important,“ she said. “Find a club that interests you or, you know, come to Modoc (Hall) and just, you can literally show up … We don’t care what your major is. We’re friendly. We don’t bite. Sometimes, but not usually.”

About Noemi Arellano-Summer

Noemi Arellano-Summer is schools, youth and families reporter at the Bulletin. She previously reported on homelessness and the 2020 eviction moratorium with the Howard Center of Investigative Journalism through Boston University. She was raised in Long Beach, California, where she started her journalism career reporting for her high school newspaper. In her free time, she can be found meandering through a bookstore or writing short stories.

She can be reached at noemi.arellano-summer@bendbulletin.com and 541-383-0325.