As an indigenous student, of first-generation Oaxacan parents, I came to SMC in the fall of 2023 as a nursing major. Each day, I took three forms of public transportation to campus, leaving before sunrise and returning home after sunset. I failed my entire first semester and fell into probation. I was in a circle that didn’t serve me and a major I had no passion for, and it all affected my mental health. In the winter of 2024, I changed my major to journalism. Surrounded by supportive peers and professors, I found a renewed motivation to learn through hands-on experiences at The Corsair, SMC’s student-led news organization. I also began reconnecting with my love for performing arts through Global Motion Dance Company. By participating in school events and activities, including “Mujer a Mujer” meetings, I met amazing leaders who looked like me and saw them take on leadership roles across academic fields.
My second year was my golden year. I earned a board position as the Social Media Coordinator for the Oaxacans at Santa Monica College Club, where I dedicated resources to Indigenous students, brought guest speakers from Oaxaca, Mexico, and helped make our club the first community college student-led organization to host a Guelaguetza for two consecutive years! This club led me to discover my roots, taking seven trips to Oaxaca, Mexico, in one year, as well as being the first in my bloodline to study abroad with SMC Japan Winter 2025 for two weeks. I met the most amazing people ever and my professor introduced me to Temple University Japan Campus!
Being a brown girl to immigrant parents whose education wasn’t higher than middle school, I am blessed to say I will be attending TUJ Japan Campus Fall ‘26! Paving the way for indigenous people and students all over the world to strive for the best!