My journey into higher education was similar to other first-generation and low-income students coming from underrepresented communities. I attended North Hollywood High School in the Valley and did not apply to a university right away because I was intimidated by the process and feared rejection. Instead, I enrolled at Pierce College, where I spent about four years while working as a waitress to help support my family. I dreamed about attending UCLA, but like many students, I was discouraged from pursuing that path. I wasn’t a straight A student, not because I lacked curiosity or intellectual ability, but because school was just one of many responsibilities I was balancing.  

I was fortunate enough to meet a counselor who referred me to Santiago “Santi” Bernal, the UCLA transfer representative at that time. Meeting Santi changed the course of my life. He believed in me and was genuinely invested in my success. He made me feel that I mattered and that my dream could become a reality. I applied to UCLA and was accepted in 1998. It marked the beginning of a truly transformative experience. 

I’ll never forget my first day on campus. Although I felt like an imposter throughout much of my undergraduate journey, I loved being part of the UCLA community. I truly believe UCLA has the best students in the world, better than any other university. The richness and value of this institution comes from its diversity within its community. 

Graduating from UCLA meant creating a new chapter of history for my family in this country. It meant that my parents’ sacrifices and all the psychosocial burdens immigrants carry in pursuit of the American Dream were not in vain. It meant believing that my future children would grow up with opportunities and security I did not always have, and that their experience in this country could be different than mine. It meant recognizing that while my parents often had to silence themselves to survive and belong, I was given a voice and the responsibility to use it so that people like me could be seen, understood and valued. Most importantly, it meant freedom—the freedom to imagine a future, to speak and to choose my own path. 

I have been involved in the Center for Community College Partnerships (CCCP) first as a mentor and later as a full-time staffer. Although CCCP did not exist when I transferred, it was the same people and philosophy that ultimately brought me to UCLA. CCCP has given me so much, especially through the students who have participated in the program. It has been an honor and a true privilege to work with CCCP scholars over the years.  

Today, I’m proud to pay my experience forward as the executive director for career and immersive experiences at UCLA. In my role, I direct the Career Center and oversee the First To Go program and Transfer Student Center. 

I see firsthand how much of the diversity within UCLA’s student population is directly connected to the work CCCP has done. All in all, there is nothing else like CCCP!