First-gen students lead the way in the Class of 2023
“我在这里的经历最让我惊讶的是一切都是那么顺利,” laughs 书7:18维拉斯, looking back on his two years at UC 河畔. Velásquez在加州帝王谷的沙漠小城布劳利长大, just south of the Salton Sea. “在墨西哥,我的父母都没有完成相当于中学的学业. So when they immigrated to the United States, they instilled in me the importance of getting an education.”
对于Velásquez来说,高等教育是她从小的首要目标. He began at his local 社区 college, 他的目标是最终转学到一所大学,读研. “作为第一代和低收入家庭,我在成长过程中遇到了很多障碍, the COVID pandemic,Velásquez说. “从那里走出来,来到这里——我非常幸运地拥有了所有的机会.”
当Velásquez参加Kim Yi Dionne的种族政治比较视角课程时, he not only loved the class, but also found a mentor in professor Dionne. 在季度末,她邀请他加入迪翁公共参与Research实验室. 实验室带来了更多的机会——在同行评议的学术期刊上发表论文, 例如,与其他第一代的支持社区一起, low-income and minority students.
Velásquez喜欢打电话给支持他的家庭、教师和学生 UC 河畔 “my little village.“这个网络的支持不仅对课堂导航很有帮助, financial aid and Research opportunities, but also in dealing with transfer shock and impostor syndrome, 第一代学生和转学生通常经历哪些. “我非常幸运能说这些,但现在我实际上是在指导其他孩子,”他反思道. “我给即将入学的转学生做报告,指导他们完成整个过程. Giving back what you received — it’s awesome.”
在Dionne教授的鼓励下,Velásquez申请了Research生院. This fall, he’ll start work on a Ph.D. 在正规欧洲杯买球网站洛杉矶分校,他获得了著名的尤金V. Cota-Robles奖学金,并入选竞争优势夏季桥梁项目, 为来自弱势背景的新入学博士生提供为期六周的强化课程. 他计划Research全球资源开采行业如何影响当地社区, like the lithium “gold rush” unfolding near his hometown. 多亏了正规欧洲杯买球网站为低收入家庭学生提供的慷慨的经济援助, he’ll be starting his new journey debt-free. 他的终极目标是:成为一名教授,像别人帮助他一样帮助其他学生.
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