Salt Lake City
I was born in El Salvador, but when I was 2 years old my mother took the tough decision to migrate to the United States and leave the war-torn country she loved after being put on the ground by a soldier holding a rifle to her head. I was raised in Echo Park, about ten minutes away from Downtown Los Angeles. The affluent town is not the same as it was when I grew up there. It was gang and drug-infested. America was my home, but I carried two labels that didn't allow me to be considered a contemporary American. I was an ESL student and undocumented. Fortunately, those two labels got cleared before I graduated from high school. Then, came the next label that of first-generation college student which brings me pride. It was viewed as non-traditional for a first-generation college student to go straight from high school to a university. It wasn't easy to complete, but I did it with the help of my single mom and other people in my life. My first professional job was elementary teaching for Los Angeles Unified School District. After teaching in South Central Los Angeles for five years, I moved to Utah. I worked in the corporate world as a project coordinator, and event planner and started an MBA program. I completed my MBA and got into Human Resources and administration work in the higher education arena. I quickly found my way back to the classroom only this time teaching adults. Teaching is gratifying to me. (Term 1 ends 2026)
I was born in El Salvador, but when I was 2 years old my mother took the tough decision to migrate to the United States and leave the war-torn country she loved after being put on the ground by a soldier holding a rifle to her head. I was raised in Echo Park, about ten minutes away from Downtown Los Angeles. The affluent town is not the same as it was when I grew up there. It was gang and drug-infested. America was my home, but I carried two labels that didn't allow me to be considered a contemporary American. I was an ESL student and undocumented. Fortunately, those two labels got cleared before I graduated from high school. Then, came the next label that of first-generation college student which brings me pride. It was viewed as non-traditional for a first-generation college student to go straight from high school to a university. It wasn't easy to complete, but I did it with the help of my single mom and other people in my life. My first professional job was elementary teaching for Los Angeles Unified School District. After teaching in South Central Los Angeles for five years, I moved to Utah. I worked in the corporate world as a project coordinator, and event planner and started an MBA program. I completed my MBA and got into Human Resources and administration work in the higher education arena. I quickly found my way back to the classroom only this time teaching adults. Teaching is gratifying to me. (Term 1 ends 2026)