Journal of Me: Entry #2

Campus Visits:

It's the end of the month and I'm about to take three trips to my potential colleges. I have a good chance of being accepted into all three and I had to visit to see if I could narrow down my choices. Since I'm the first in my family pursuing a college education, I don't really know what to look for in a school. I keep hearing that I will know and it will "feel" right, but that doesn't really help. What is exactly is this right feeling? I hope to achieve this feeling on my visits and gather information about my schools. I'm taking my parents and feel that they may have trouble understanding our tours but I hope for the best.

Ivy College

This is our first of the college trips and to the most prestigious one: Ivy College. It is right near the state line and hopefully all these trips don't put a burden on my parents pocketbook since gas is so highly priced. If I was to imagine college, this would be the perfect picture based on the brochures. It took about 3 hours to arrive and found the town to be in the middle of nowhere. Though it was easy to find, the college itself is surrounded by woods and a road leads the driver into the forest to discover Ivy College. The signs were found were all big names like the John Adams Building for Academic Admissions and the J.P. Reilly Scholars Union and Research Center. From the names, we didn't really understand where to go. We finally found our destination to the Lincoln and Brandy Orientation Unit. The welcome center, as I'll refer to it, was nice and interesting in many ways. It seemed more like a doctor's office than a welcome center. It was very quiet, neat, and demanded respect.

As our guide came, she gave us a packet of information to muddle over and we were on our way. The campus was beautiful. Brick buildings, perfect trees, perfect day, and a nice stroll through Ivy College. She explained to us there were many places to eat and see and made the campus seem smaller than it was. We arrived at the Jasper Kats Center for Medical Research and made our way to the 8th floor. There, my parents were whisked off to who knows where, while I stayed and met a third year student in the medical program. They took me through the criteria for admission and the ins and outs of the program. I asked a ton of questions and some were met with a "I'll have to ask" or "good question". Unfortunately, she wasn't able to answer everything. Next, I got to meet some faculty who were considered world-renowned scholars. They were very interested in my story and if I had any questions. They asked me about my ambitions and where I saw myself after college was over. I re-met my tour guide and I finished the tour exploring the student union, which turned out to be on the other side of campus. I found my parents waiting and it turns out they had a wonderful time with the financial advisor of the school but were still confused about the needs of their college student. Overall, the school and research power was impressive. They were very structured and the people were friendly. It would be nice to go there because I know that they would help me achieve my goals as a pre-med major and become a doctor someday.

Big City University

The second in our trips was to Big City University. Its location is in the heart of Downtown, USA and from what I hear, you get a great education and all that a large city offers. We've been to the city many times and it wasn't too hard to find, though the traffic was frustrating along with the rain. We got to campus finally and it took us a while to find parking. We had to go around and around even to find the place. We arrived at our destination to the large student center, made our way up stairs, and to find the admissions office busy with activity as we looked to start our tour. It had finally stopped raining when we started though the humidity was slightly annoying. We were taken here and there and nothing really stood out as too noteworthy. The city is surrounding the campus and is very noisy. I would hope that I could find a great little place to study once I arrived on site.

The last half of the tour was individualized and I was taken with my parents to the Franklin Medical Center to get a glance at their program. We were greeted by a faculty member and a student. They took us on a tour and sat down to take questions about the university and program. It seemed like the student didn't want to be there and the faculty member felt anxious about the whole event. Despite that fact, the tour was nice, the weather cleared up, and the city surrounding the university intrigued me. We were even taken into the city and pointed out how the institution collaborated with many business, shops, and restaurants. Overall, though the campus itself was interesting, the people weren't as friendly as I had hoped.

State University

State University is an in-state college that has the program I'm looking for, not as prestigious but will offer me a quality education. It is close enough to home and far enough away. Its a new adventure and the final trip on our tour of colleges. The drive was a straight shot up the highway and a right turn directed us to campus. Th signs to the university were easy to read and we turned into the school and a main road led us into campus. From there, we saw signs for the admissions office and ample parking. The main desk was right inside the admissions center and we were just on time for our campus tour. We were taken all around and the guide filled our heads with traditions, building names, cafeterias, book stores, and other things that seemed like the standard for all these tours. We ate in a nice cafeteria with trees inside and quiet spots to study. This was no normal lunch but ate with current students who had the same major I was looking into pursuing. This was amazing for the fact that I got to hear about what they did both on and off campus.

The second half of the tour seemed more custom and was to meet with an academic advisor who oversaw the medical department. The building which housed the medical department seemed full of life, people hanging out, and in general seeming to be engaged with what they were learning. I found my academic advisor to be friendly and open to any questions I had, which was nice, since I had a lot of questions. My parents at this point got taken to do parent things and I hoped they would understand what was going on. My advisor seemed to have as many questions as I did and really wanted to get to know what was important to me, my hopes, fears, and curriculum questions. He asked, "Outside of school, what do you want to do". This was something that flustered me and I had to think about for a few minutes. No one had ever asked me about that before him. I said I wanted to stay connected with my Latino heritage but at the same time get outside of my comfort level. I then found myself being escorted to the student life office, where we visited before, but the advisor made a call and we meet briefly with the Director of Multicultural Affairs. She told me about the programs they had to offer and gave me information on other activities such as Greek life, academic clubs, and sports. We then reunited with my parents and I found out that they were less clueless than usual. They told me that an interpreter had helped with their other tours and were informed about the financial aid process and what they needed to do to help me. As we departed, I found myself smiling because I think I found a right fit. Except I can explain this feeling. The people were what made this experience unique and enjoyable. They were personable, open and saw resources outside of their department to help.

In the end, I had to make a choice. I weighed my options and found that I was putting programs, buildings, and people against each other. I then prioritized what was most important to me. In the end, people seemed like the most influential factor on my decision. The program could be the prestigious in the nation but without anybody to support me, it wouldn't mean as much. I saw the situation I was in, being the first one to go to college, and the need to feel grounded. At one college, it felt like I was a priority to the campus. The faculty, staff and students had a good grasp on who they were, what they were about, and at what length they would help someone in need. I know that financially, some of the other schools are more expensive and I asked myself, what exactly I was paying the extra money for. I found that I could have a great program and people at one school. My final choice is State University. I said, based on my pre-conceptions, that I wasn't too sure about the school but the people seemed to be the deciding factor. I'm really excited to begin my journey, though the stress of finances are still there, I'm eager to become more independent!

The Journal of Me: Entry #1

A first person account of my voice

Frustrated. Confused. These are just a few of the many feelings I am experiencing currently. I'm trying to apply for scholarships, grants, and understand financial aid and everything is getting mixed up with what forms to use, when to apply, and where I send the paperwork.

I feel like I have no one to turn to. My parents didn't go to college. My cousins haven't gone. Even my neighbors, if they did go to college, it was in an another country. I try to work the best I can with my teachers and counselors but there seems to be a breach in communication. This is new to me, not to them, and its hard to express all the things I don't know. I feel overwhelmed. Who would have thought it was going to be this tough just to get into college?

More importantly, is where am I going to go to college. Our family obviously can barely help to support me, meaning that I will have to stay in-state in order to pursue my education. I guess it is not so bad, I will be close to family and my friends who are working. But, I wanted a chance to explore, try a completely new experience, and have a chance to define myself. I have three different choices of colleges a large state school, a mid-major university, and a private institution. I really hope I can get into a private school or the big school since they have a large amount of resources for me to use. I'm going to be visiting all three these upcoming weekends. I hope to find one that fits perfectly. I'm not sure what I'm looking for, but I think I will know when I find it!

~Maria

Current Readings and Viewings:

Growing up Latino by Ilan Stavans and Harold Augenbraum

The Motorcycle Diaries

The Culture of Now

In order to understand where my voice is to be going, I have to examine the current climate of the environment she will be entering. According to recent statistics 41.3 million Americans identify themselves as being Latino. Of this large and increasing number, 17 percent of this group is of the traditional "college-age". But of this number only 19 percent of these young people actually choose to pursue a higher education.

What could make this number so low? Is it the government? Is it the culture? Is it a lack of knowledge on both parts? A blame cannot be place in one place. one part is the lack of knowledge about the college environment to a large majority of young Latinos. Laura Rendon, a professor of education at California State University states ("Educating", 2008):

Many Latino students attend poor elementary and secondary schools...In addition they often come from low-income backgrounds and are the first in their families to even consider higher education. They lack knowledge about how and where to apply for college and what it takes to succeed once they're admitted.

Feelings of incompetence and frustration may be more prevalent than their White counterparts.

One other aspect is the lack of support in the higher education system. Being the first in the family, like Maria, to attend college they may not have any solid role models, mentors, or sponsors in that environment. Due to a backlash in affirmative action, college hiring committees have not needed to focus on the hiring of an ethnically diverse staff. The places that Latinos choose to attend choose are places they are likely to go and thus have stretched the resources of certain areas making them almost ineffective.

Contrary to popular belief, Latinos have the largest amount of college students applying for financial aid. Unfortunately, they receive the lowest amount, in terms of ethnic group, to get student aid awards. This aid is a critical part of assistance in many families since they do not have the funds to support their child fully. More than half of all Latinos receive a grant of some kind. This could be even more with increasing government sponsored programs. For example, one suggestion was that due to the lack of ESL teachers in secondary and primary education, that the government could create relief to those who chose to pursue a degree of that kind.

What is the culture once Latinos reach campus? Is it all the same? It would be naive to think that Latinos could be examined under the same microscope. With a large amount of Latinos coming from a variety of different countries, customs are almost so far apart that they could be classified to subcultures more than one complete group. In order to help these students succeed it is important to get a point of view from them. In an article published by Mooney and Drakes, they found that Latinos can fall into three separate categories in their attitudes towards higher education. One group can be called assimilators. These people have adapted to the dominate culture and may be so intertwined with the larger group that they are blind to discrimination and its impact on their environment. The next category is the accommodators. They see that discrimination is happening but believe that they, as individuals, can create the changes need to succeed in what they are pursuing. The last category is resistors. These individuals see a high level of discrimination happening. This is by far the largest of the three groups with 43% believing in this view according to a survey conducted by Mooney and Drakes ( 2008, p. 12-14).

The question remains is how can one begin to work with Latinos in helping them navigate the steps of higher education. Throughout my blog, I will try to better understand the unique needs of the wide variety of subcultures and see what conclusions can be made in becoming an advocate for my voice.

Drakes, D.R., Mooney, M. (2008). Profiles of Latino Adaptation at Elite Colleges and Universities. American Journal of Community Psychology 42 (1), 1-16. from Google Scholar.

(2008). Educating the Largest Minority Group. The Chronicle 50 (14). from The Chronicle Review

Creating a Foundation for Success

What does it mean to go to college through the eyes of a Latino, female, first generation student in today's American college and university system? That is the question that I will be trying to address through the sixteen week voice project. From the first voice project, I choose to create a blog and will continue to do so. The Internet is a great resource, if used correctly, and can bring information instantly to the blog format such as videos, research articles, music, and art. The later half of the summer sessions was when the peak of my research was conducted and rounding of my voice took place. I hope to feature immersive experiences earlier in my blog and continue these throughout the sixteen week process.

Choosing to be in the voice of a Latino woman was chosen because immigrants from Mexico and other Spanish speaking nations are some of the fastest growing constituents in America. Currently, society has to make changes in policy, education, and culture in order to accommodate for this rising constituency. Through this project I hope to be able to feature women, the family structure, spirituality, art, music, food, and the special needs of a college-aged Latino woman. Grounding my voice in theory, I hope to be able to tell first-hand accounts of developments that take place and progress to featuring the environment in which she occupies. I hope to conduct at least two interviews, in order to test my assumptions and to create a well-rounded view of today's Latino woman.

In order to start becoming an advocate for my voice, I have to share my opinions and stereotypes of Latino women. I have not had a lot of interaction with this type of person but books, movies, and other media has helped strengthen a view. From my perspective, Latino women are very family oriented people with several generations being a support group for the individual. Immigrants from Spanish speaking countries often times get jobs where they are around a large concentration of other Latinos. Many co-workers of mine in a past job have been annoyed or complained about the fact that Latinos refuse or apprehensive about communicating in English. They see the need for these people to become Americanized to this culture. They don't see the need to make accommodations for Spanish speaking cultures since this country's primary language of choice is English.

Media has always portrayed these women as very emotional, sassy, and fast-talking but compared to other negative stereotypes, are shown as strong-willed and passionate too. They seem to run the household and are the foundation for a family. The Latino population seems to be portrayed as two extremes. One is that Latinos are lazy or they are hardworking. In Westerns, such as The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly and the Magnificent Seven, Latinos are portrayed as the villains, creepy, and murderous. Towards the modern day, they are portrayed as trouble makers, low income, and general nuisances. I do not have a large amount of prior knowledge of Latino culture except that I enjoy the food and respect and find the works of Diego Rivera and Frida Kahlo as a testament to the struggles of their people and of the Latino woman. I can speak a little Spanish, due to a sister using me as a buddy for testing her Spanish, but strongly believe that institutions around the country will encounter a similar situation of helping and advocating for Latino women in America.

For the remainder of the blog, this woman will be called Maria. She is a first-generation college student who is Latino. With her parents originally from Mexico, they've immigrated to the United States when Maria was only a baby and have lived in a lower-class society for most of her life. She worked hard in school and has received several scholarships to alleviate the stress of finances, at least for the time being. She is the first one in her family to have the possible of receiving a higher education. She comes from a neighborhood with a high concentration of Latino men and women and the majority of her communication is done in Spanish and is the language of choice at home. She grew up as a Catholic and is regularly practicing her faith in the community. She enjoys cooking, dancing (traditional dances), and volunteering at her local hospital. She sees college as a chance to do something her parents could not and has selected a major as pre-medicine in order to become a doctor someday. I hope to explore her interests, take part in her religious practices and participate in like-experiences in order to see through the eyes of Maria.

Due to the structure of the environments class, I will follow Maria's journey from starting with her visiting colleges to starting her first year as a freshman. I hope to create a story that helps address the issues of the environment of higher education. Additionally, I want to explore the culture in order to deter stereotypes and create a knowledge base to educate students, faculty, staff, and parents about this wonderful side of the new American culture.