ANA GUADARRAMA

I am a First Generation Latina student at San Jose State University; I am a third-year transfer student. My major is Kinesiology, and I am committed to pursuing a career as an Exercise Physiologist. At San Jose City College, I was also able to host a workshop with a community organizer about healing from Intergenerational Trauma as an Undocumented Student. My goal was for students to leave the workshop knowing how to recover from trauma. I talked about the journey of navigating Higher Education while also navigating mental health in search of self-love. Today, it is still hard for me to navigate school while also trying to navigate my mental health.

I was in the EOPS program at San Jose City College, where they guided me through my college experience. I was able to get academic/personal counseling, priority registration, book services, transfer assistance, university visits, success skills workshops, and UC/CSU fee waivers. This year has been challenging for my family and me. My father works in construction. Seeing him come home every day at 8 pm or 9 pm has been heartbreaking because I see how much he does, and it's all for his family. He recently lost his job for no reason. It was challenging to see the worry in his teary eyes and how much it hurt him to lose that job where he gave it all, where he showed his passion for building and fixing.

I would benefit from this scholarship because I can help my family with anything we might need. I was also not able to get my full tuition covered at San Jose State. It was tough to pay the rest of my schooling, and I had to go out to sell handmade keychains to save up for school. I would benefit from this scholarship because I believe that my education is vital to me and has helped me make a significant difference in my community.