Escaping Communism
My parents and I left Cuba in 1980 on a boat. We were sent temporarily to a refugee camp in Wisconsin and then our family in California were able to claim us and have lived in CA ever since. My parents had to make significant sacrifices to leave their country in order to find a better life for their children. Although I’m the only child from my parents, my father had three (3) kids from his first marriage, all of whom are now in the U.S. We left Cuba for a better place, for a placed that we could have freedom of choice, of speech and so much more.
Growing Up in California
Growing up in the South Bay Area of Los Angeles brought its own challenges. I was often asked why I had hair on my arms or why I spoke “funny.” My father worked in a factory and my mom had various jobs but for the most part cleaned houses and businesses. It was during my senior year in high school that my peers would ask me where I was applying to and later was asked where I got accepted to. Yet, I wasn’t able to answer either question. First, I had no idea I had to go somewhere after high school as both my parents expected me to work so the idea of college had not crossed my mind.
My family had a family friend whose son went to college and I always looked up to him, at times even wanting to have his life. In fact, he was the one that inspired me to try to go to college. My high school counselor did not speak to me like he did to many of my peers. While my classmates were having conversations about applying to Stanford and Yale, he was having conversations with me about trade school or speaking with the career office regarding finding work.
Like many high school seniors, I found myself going to community college not knowing exactly what I was going to do next nor how to get there. I couldn’t ask my parents about college because they were new to the U.S. and had no idea how the educational system worked. So, a lot had to be figured out on my own and asking lots of questions, no matter how dumb I felt, I had to know. When I enrolled at community college, I took the courses I needed to be able to transfer to a UC. My first meeting with the academic advisor at the community college was not a good one. He said to me, “You are taking too many classes and you’re going to fail.” That semester I got a 4.0! Later, I transferred to UC Berkeley and obtained my bachelor’s in psychology.
I knew that my BA was not going to be enough for the career that I was in, so I ended up going for my master’s degree in social work at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, MI. Several years later I obtained my doctorate in education…of which my mom said in Spanish, “Que bien, felicidades, y que es eso que recibistes?”
Advice to First-Gen Students
If I could give my first-geners advice it would be to follow your dreams. I know that the journey might not look how you imagined it would be and that there are going to be hurdles along the way, but you can do it, you can. Believe that you can and you will. Don’t be afraid to ask for help, lots of it! Don’t feel like you have to do this alone either, because you are not alone and never stop giving back.