What is your hometown? Brasilia, Brazil
What colleges did you attend? Degrees earned? Santa Monica College - AA
Cal State Los Angeles - B.A. in English
Cal State Los Angeles - M.A. in TESOL
What motivated you to go to college? As someone who was born and raised in extreme poverty in Brazil and who had to enter the workforce at the tender age of 5 (yes, 5 years old!), I always heard my mother say, "If you want to have a better future, you have to go to school." Even though neither one of my parents finished High School, my mother believed that if her 4 children went to school, they'd be able to have a career and a better future. Well, my mother's dream became mine.
Describe your college experience as first-generation. Being a first-generation college student in one's native country is already difficult enough, now imagine moving to a new country at the age of 22 with $300 in her pocket and with a dream of becoming an ESL Professor. That dream was what motivated me to work as a waitress and as an English Tutor while attending college full-time. As an immigrant and a first generation college student, there was so much that I did not know about: financial aid, scholarships, professor's office hours, time management, study skills, and the list goes on; however, along the way, I had professors who were passionate about the classes they taught and that were rather inspiring. Those professors inspired me to keep pushing and keep pursuing my dream. I also had really amazing classmates and friends who were very supportive and helpful, not to mention my church family, the only family that I had in the USA.
What unique challenges did you face? As a first generation college student in a new country with a completely new educational system and language, I felt like I did not know anything about college. I did not know how to choose my classes, how to to choose a major, where to transfer to, how to fill out a transfer application, how to pay for college, how to pay rent, how to ….(you name it!!!). Everything was new and very different from life back in Brazil.
How did you overcome those challenges? I overcame these challenges by focusing on my goal and my mother's dream, the dream of getting an education and of becoming an English as a Second Language Professor in the United States. No matter how difficult life was, I was determined to change my life for the better and that I was going to make my mother proud. Meeting good people along the way helped, and without the support of friends, teachers, and the staff at the schools I attended, I would not have reached my goal.
What did you advise other first-generation students? My advice is to have a goal or a dream in mind and to go and pursue it. Create connections with your classmates, professors, and with the college staff along the way; help your classmates; stay focused; dream big; work hard; do not give up. You will get there eventually.
