Overcoming Cultural Barriers in Higher Education I was born in South Central Los Angeles, where I lived for approximately 12 years. I am the seventh child of 11 in a family of Mexican descent. Both my mother and father were born and raised in Mexico. They came to the United States to provide their children with the ¨better life¨ of which many immigrant parents dream.

Martha Figueroa recently graduated from Pitzer College with a bachelor’s degree in Spanish.

My parents spoke only Spanish in our home, and my adjustment to school was especially difficult because I had to learn English. Making things even more difficult, we were always moving due to our financial difficulties. The constant change in surroundings and my difficulties with learning, even in my own language, led me to dislike school. It was not until I was in fourth grade that a teacher, Mr. Trammell, helped me gain confidence in myself and challenged my learning abilities. Even then, I knew that one day I would become a teacher so that I could help students as Mr. Trammell had helped me. I still struggled with my classes; however, I now was equipped with the confidence to succeed.

As a student at Montclair High School, I continued to have a difficult time in school. I received good grades, but I had to work hard for them. Luckily, I had a few teachers who helped me along the way. As the college-application deadline approached, I began visiting the career center and my counselor’s office, but my counselor was not able to attend to me as much as she would have liked to because of the large number of students at our school. One of my teachers, Mr. Thomas, suggested I drop by his classroom and talk to two Pitzer College students who were scheduled to address his class. I liked what I heard and was inspired to fill out an application for admission. When I went to ask my counselor for advice, she advised me that I should not apply to Pitzer because she didn’t want me to be disappointed when I wasn’t accepted. But I was determined, and another teacher, Mrs. Sloane, helped me with the application process and accompanied me on my first visit to Pitzer.

While I was in high school, I worked at a local junior high school as a tutor. During my college years, I interned at a local junior high school as a mentor. Through these valuable experiences, I observed many students experiencing the same struggles as my siblings and I had. I also realized that many students were not aware of all the colleges they could apply to and of the myriad opportunities attending college would offer them. While at Pitzer, I decided to pay a visit to my high school and speak in my teachers’ classrooms to share my high school and college experiences. I wanted students like myself who would also be the first in their families to attend college to learn how to get into college and what to expect once they were enrolled. These discussions covered the SAT, scholarships, grants, and college applications and deadlines. By the first semester of my senior year of college, I decided that with the assistance of Mrs. Sloane, who put me in contact with other teachers, I would dedicate every Friday to visiting not only Montclair High School but other local high schools and junior high schools to speak with students.

With the experience of my own struggles and my knowledge of other students´ similar struggles, I have decided that I will continue visiting schools following my graduation from college. My goal is to establish a nonprofit organization that will provide local students with tutors, mentors, career and college counselors, and even language-development sessions. Eventually, I would like to provide parents with information sessions to better inform them about the school system with the goal of helping them become actively involved in their children’s education. With the help of many, I am seeking grants so that the program can get started within one to two years of my graduation. If awarded enough grant money, I’ll also be able to hire high-school students as tutors.

Breaking though language and other cultural barriers has definitely not been easy, but it has certainly been worth the time and effort. I will continue to overcome whatever obstacles I encounter to reach my goals and to help others.