PirateQ 
Johnny Gazoo
Johnny Gazoo knows the difference Pensacola State College can make in a person’s life.
He’s hoping his time, work and effort at PSC will help him reach his goals – one of which is to go back and sit on the side of that Central American volcano.
Gazoo and his wife moved from Pensacola to Panama during the Covid-19 shutdown, and it was there, on the side of a volcano, where he met a group of well-to-do “digital nomads” who worked high-tech jobs that allowed them the freedom to work where they please.
“I wanted that lifestyle,’’ he said. “The freedom to come and go and work wherever I want to work.”
He has a Bachelor of Arts in Public Relations, Advertising and Applied Communication from the University of West Florida and worked managing social media for various companies, but it wasn’t as profitable as he had hoped. He then began looking at the community college back in Pensacola – PSC.
Now, Gazoo is a PSC student studying computer programming and analysis. He will graduate with an Associate of Science degree in December or spring 2024. He works with PSC’s Marketing department as a social media specialist.
“I applied for every scholarship,’’ Gazoo said. “PSC offers so many incredible scholarships, and I was fortunate to receive three.”
Besides UWF, Gazoo also briefly attended George Washington University in Washington, D.C.
“Nothing against those schools, but they’re so big and so vast, and there can be this sort of disconnect,’’ he said. “At PSC, there is this incredible community of instructors who are so invested in seeing their students succeed. They understand that many PSC students have lives and jobs, and some take night classes. But the teachers and administration are dedicated to helping students succeed no matter the challenge.”