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Happy National First Gen Day! 🫶🏽
Happy National First Gen Day! 🫶🏽
Dr. Arizmendi here 🙋🏽‍♀️ I am first gen in just about every way. First generation born in the U.S. First and only child. First in my family to go to leave home for university. Raised by my Spanish-speaking grandparents in a rural bordertown. Nobody hands you a map for this journey. You draw it as you go.
In 2007, I left home on the Nogales border for @uarizona as an undeclared major. I remember all of it. Starting the journey & experiencing the culture shock. The university community certainly didn’t look anything like my community. Searching for anything that felt like home & not finding it. Not knowing what I wanted to study or who I wanted to become.
My first semester, I got my first C — ever! I took it as a sign that maybe I wasn’t cut out for uni. I remember walking to the bus home thinking, “I’ll be lucky if I even get this bachelor’s.”
Then I found @arizonaslhs my junior year and met the most incredible mentor. For the 1st time, someone saw me in this place & offered me the opportunity to grow through research. I finally saw my community in the work: the Spanish I grew up with, the bilingual kids back home, the border that made me. I wanted to do it all.. and I did as one of the few Latinas around. SLHS was very white; but so was the university. I had no idea that the field itself was one of the whitest professions in the country until I earned my MS in 2013.. thanks to an article that came out in @theatlantic that year.
3 degrees, 2 post docs, & lots & lots of struggles, tears, lessons, opportunities, and joys later, I’m back at @uarizona. This time as a tenure track faculty — something I heard wouldn’t happen. Now I get to be that person for students and create all the experiences I wish I had growing up.
The journey has never been easy. I would still choose it, every time.
To the little girl from Nogales.. you made it. 🥹
To every first gen student reading this: you belong here & you never have to leave home (or yourself) behind to get here. Que todo se puede. SĂganle dando 🫶🏽✊🏽
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📸 @angelitoenfilm 🤩👏🏽
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