Kiyoko Ando

When she moved from Japan to Los Angeles, Kiyoko Ando originally planned to work as a dancer, but after suffering a critical neck injury, she had to find a new career. To get started, Kiyoko enrolled in Level 7 English as a Second Language, Vocational ESL, and ESL Digital classes at the Community Learning Center (CLC). After completing noncredit ESL, Kiyoko transitioned to MiraCosta College credit courses, taking more than 11 classes in ESL, horticulture, hospitality, art, business, and media arts and technologies.

Kiyoko had always loved flowers and crafts, and had experience with Ikebana, a Japanese-style floral arrangement. She started taking more flower arrangement classes, and also worked at flower shops to gain more experience. While a student, Kiyoko made a digital story about her career goal to become a floral designer. Through MiraCosta’s Small Business Development Center (SBDC), she learned about and got assistance with starting her own business. Now Kiyoko is living her dream being the owner of her own small business, Cherry Blossom Floral Designs.

Kiyoko’s transition from noncredit to credit courses was a great experience for her because along the way the classes helped build her confidence. The classes also helped her build computer skills useful for credit classes. Kiyoko learned about the SBDC through of one her teachers. “The SBDC helped me create me create my business plan, offered a variety of workshops, professional advice and financial information, which helped me tremendously,” she explains.

Kiyoko admits starting a business is a challenge. Due to her small budget, she does almost everything herself, including designing, making floral arrangements, photographing her arrangements, bookkeeping and making marketing materials. Throughout her struggles with starting a business, Kiyoko still managed to obtain straight A’s and received an ESL scholarship that eventually helped her both financially and mentally.

Kiyoko is very grateful to have met supportive, wonderful teachers and to have acquired such great resources at the CLC, MiraCosta College’s Oceanside Campus and the SBDC. Kiyoko strongly advises any student who has career goals to use these resources, because after all, “they are here for us.”