From slow start to full stride, Seminole State SGA president is Going Far

After graduating from Seminole High School, Madeleine Coffee was recruited to join the Running Raiders women’s cross-country team at Seminole State College of Florida – a surprise to her since she wasn’t the fastest runner. In fact, she was “dead last.”

But Seminole State recognizes potential, and soon, Coffee proved that Raider Athletics was right to add her to their roster.

“After a summer of conditioning and countless long runs, I slowly moved up, eventually earning a spot in the top six and running at nationals,” she said. “I was proud of that growth, but even more, I was grateful.”

That was just the beginning of her journey. Coffee soon realized that support at Seminole State extends beyond athletics. Her success as a student-athlete coupled with encouragement from her coaches, advisors and professors, spurred her to broaden the horizons of her college experience. 

In her second semester at Seminole State, Coffee joined the Campus Activities Team, where Mauricio Garcia, assistant director of Student Life, helped her learn the importance of setting boundaries and encouraged her to build on her strengths and embrace personal growth. “That experience in Student Life pushed me to step even further out of my comfort zone,” she said.

Now Coffee is doing something she never imagined but that support from those around her made her brave enough to try. After a successful campaign, she’s serving fellow Raiders as the Student Government Association president at the Sanford/Lake Mary Campus.

The support she found at Seminole State is the same support her family has received at the College for generations. After emigrating from Vietnam in 1979, Coffee’s grandmother, Hang Tran, took her first English and cooking classes at the College, helping her start a new life. Later, Coffee’s mother, Mai Tran, would attend Seminole State and earn her Associate in Arts degree before transferring to the University of Central Florida. 

“Affordable and accessible education has been the key to opportunity for my family and for countless families in Central Florida,” Coffee said. “I’m not sure I’d be standing here today if Seminole State hadn’t welcomed my grandmother, my mother and me with such open arms. This College has given us opportunity, support and community across generations.”

As a student-athlete and a top representative of Seminole State’s student body, Coffee is also dedicated to her studies as an honors student and earned a scholarship from the Foundation for Seminole State College. She is majoring in health sciences and aims to increase access to healthy, nutritious food and hygiene products – which she believes is essential to student success – for her fellow Raiders. “Every step of the way, the staff here have supported these efforts,” Coffee shared. “That kind of commitment to students is something rare, and I don’t take it for granted.”

Coffee’s hard work and determination have not only propelled her to success in athletics and student government but also earned her recognition from Seminole State’s Board of Trustees, who honored her with a We Change Lives certificate given to outstanding students who are nominated by the College’s faculty and staff.

“The grace and kindness shown by the staff here have helped me grow in ways I couldn’t have imagined when I first arrived,” Coffee said. Now she’s in full stride and shows no signs of stopping. She’s continuing her family’s success in the same place that helped them Go Far.