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Nivea Torres, Ph.D. Educational Studies
My experiences with different languages began at a very early age. I was born in Puerto Rico where I lived the first four years of my life. When I was four, we moved to St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands, where my father worked as a chemical engineer for an American oil company. While my parents spoke Spanish exclusively at home, my sister and I were encouraged to learn English in order to be sucessful and "fit in" at school and social gatherings organized by my father's company.
I feel that college was my biggest transition and challenge in terms of language, culture, and identity. I went to Penn State for my B.A. in International Politics, where I faced a culture shock when I arrived at my dorm. I was to share a room with a stranger who could not understand why I needed to call home almost everyday and receive my mother's blessing, why I pinned up my hair at night, or why I walked around my room on Sundays with big, pink curlers to straighten my hair.
During my doctoral studies at UCONN, the experience was completely different. As I walk through UCONN now and see myself in the faces of many other students, I wonder if some of them are goin through many of the things I went through...However, at UCONN I was very happy to see how Latino students network and build bonds through the Puerto Rican and Latin American Cultural Center and the Institute of Puerto Rican and Latino Studies. These two places serve in many cases as a home away from home for many students. Through their activities, workshops, seminars, and social events Latino students are able to feel a sense of "belonging" in a new environment. I am grateful for the opportunity that PRLS and its faculty and staff gave me in spronsoring my doctoral studies. This has made me reaffirm my committment and priority school districts where there is an increasing need for Latino/a professionals who understand students' culture and identity.
Yvette Velez - Speech given at the Latino Recognition Banquet
(excerpts)
Family, friends and soon to be graduates of
2003. I was asked to say a few words and reflect on my experiences
here at the University of Connecticut. Before I go into what
I have to say, I would like to share a part of a poem that I
came across my 2nd semester. This poem has inspired me to never
put away the desire of doing what my heart tells me to.
Dare to Risk (Anonymous)
To laugh is to risk appearing a fool
To weep is to risk appearing sentimental
To reach for another is to risk involvement.
To expose your ideas, your dreams,
before a crowd is to risk their loss.
To love is to risk not being
loved in return.
To live is to risk dying.
To believe is to risk failure.
But risks must be taken, because the greatest hazard
in life is to risk nothing.
People, who risk nothing, do nothing, have nothing,
are nothing.
They may avoid suffering and sorrow, but they cannot
learn, feel, change, grow, love, live.
Chained by their attitudes, they are slaves, they
have forfeited their freedom.
Only a person who dares to risk is truly free.
Sometimes what may appear as the smallest risk taken,
will actually be the biggest step one takes through the journey
of individual growth. With everything one does in life, one takes
a risk. Right now, I am standing before you taking the risk of
exposing my inner self and identity; exposing the intimate feelings
that flow within me. But, this is one of the small risks involved
in my everyday life.
Four years ago, I envisioned myself on the tip of
a diving board, contemplating whether or not to take the plunge
and jump, or to step back and not take the risk of maybe drowning.
Four years ago, the University of Connecticut composed my body
of water; whether or not to make the move from my close-knit environment
to a world I had no knowledge of was my contemplation.
Four years ago, I would have not found myself standing
here before you, publicly placing my inner thoughts. It is amazing
to see what four years can bring. Here at UConn, I have been a
witness to my growth as an individual. I have met my strengths
and weaknesses, as well have been able to see what my limits are.
I have come across a diverse outlook on life as well, experienced
a personal journey of inner peace and identity. I have come face
to face with the realization that with determination and dedication
one can accomplish anything one puts their mind to. I have fought
an inner battle of trying to find myself; trying to be just me...
To the class of 2003, one thing I can leave you with
is "Don't live just to live, live to risk, experience and appreciate
the beauty of life."
Institute's Graduate Students
Rosemary Diaz is a Ph.D. student in the Medical
Anthropology Program. A Latin Americanist with joint interests
in mental health and illness, acculturation, and identity,
she teaches undergraduate courses for the Anthropology
Department and for the Puerto Rican and Latino Studies
Institute. She also mentors and tutors undergraduate students
of color.
Teresa C. Vergara is a doctoral student in
the History Department. She is currently working on her Ph.D. dissertation,
which focuses on the study of the native population of Peru during
the colonial period. She works as a research assistant at PRLS.
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