Carmen Aguilar

SMC Staff

“When I first came to America, it was a lot tougher. There was no such thing as ESL.”

Arriving in Arizona at the age of 7 from Guadalajara, Mexico, Carmen Aguilar recalls that learning to speak, read and write English was tough. “But it was just something you had to do,” she says. Her memories of that time, she finds, are important in dealing with her international students. “We try to do it all, from A to Z,” says Carmen of her work at the International Students Center. “After we accept a student, they’re our responsibility. So we do all we can to stay in touch.”

She continues, “I work on their registration. But then I also advise them about loans, driver’s licenses, even buying a car. And with housing issues,” says Carmen, “we try to give them all the options. We can even find them a hotel until they decide on something more permanent.”

Carmen has witnessed a lot of changes since the days when she herself was a student at SMC. “I’ve seen the international student population go from 150 to over 1,000,” she says. “The administration is always open to ideas for new programs. We just had an evening of Asian song and performance. And soon we’ll be putting on a ‘Transfer Day’ specifically for the international students.”

“I do love my work,” says Carmen, “and I think that’s the most important thing if you’re going to do a job well.”

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