You should be proud of what you have accomplished in being accepted to a first-rate university, but your work has just begun. If there are times when you are uncertain of yourself, this is normal, particularly within the self-driven environment of the university. At times our culture doesn’t adequately prepare us for some of the things that we will encounter at the university; particularly with regard to the reward system. But we all bring our own virtue to the learning process and in the final analysis are better persons as a result. Work diligently; and as Langston Hughes wrote “hold fast to dreams.”

Fist and foremost, I met some of the most wonderful people there that I still keep in touch with on a personal level. Secondly, it allowed me to understand may of the barriers and difficulties that I would face in institutions of higher learning, but validated my belonging. Third and probably most importantly, an EOP Outreach Counselor, Andres Sanchez, actively recruited me to attend the university. I recall him calling me into his office at Santa Barbara High School and encouraging me to apply to the university given the courses I was taken and grades I was accomplishing. Why I was doing this I didn’t know; what I do know is that it wasn’t as a result of a high school counselor’s encouraging me. There after, he and other EOP staff assisted my parents and me in filling out the university application and financial aid paperwork.

It’s instilled in me a passion for learning (this may have always been there, education at the university level just drew it out) and the ability to teach myself. I also actively encourage other persons of all ages --but particularly the youth, to pursue higher educational goals. With my own children I take them to the library often. I also have developed more confidence to participate in PTA’s and other committees as well. Depending on how one defines “quality of life,” I think that my life has been enhanced as a result of acquiring a university level education. I feel that the nature of the work that I do now-- writing researching conferral with others etc., is unlike any conception of “work” of whitch I had prior knowledge. In terms of my education, I am also proud in instances where I am able to assist other in any number of ways as a result of my education. Some things that we do on a daily basis that appear trivial or simple to us, may be difficult for others. As I have learned more about my family history in terms of past generations, I actually thing it’s pretty incredible how far I’ve come.

Graduating twice after having not been successful on three attempts. It’s funny, but I would go to the university and circumstance—primarily economic and personal, would cause me to be successful at it. I remember coming back the third time and a EOP Counselor, Charlie Garcia, told me: “maybe the 90’s is your decade.” It was I completed my BA and MA during this decade. Another thing that I recall was a counselor in Letters & Science, Susan Belanger, who worked with me on a quarterly basis to craft a schedule and would ensure that I graduated. When I did graduate, I remember someone calling my name; when I turned around, it was her, on crutches with a broken ankle, hobbling towards me crying and hugging me: she was proud of what we did. I was too. With the encouragement of a professor in the Political Science Department, Eric Smith, I applied to graduate school and completed an M.A. within the context of working full-time and having a wife and two children. I still hope that an opportunity will present itself at some point in the future to re-visit a doctorate.

At times I tend to take things very personally, and felt hurt at some of the Propositions that were being bantered about regarding minorities and their role in higher education. It’s a weird thing, but that’s how U felt. First of all, I thought that we were all scholars and that we were at the university as a result of this. This should have been the goal, not who you were. But if life outside the university has taught me one thing, and it’s something I struggle with daily in work and life, it’s that politics and political decisions aren’t always about what’s right, factual or true.