UCF Student Report

My parents immigrated to the United States at a very young age. Having no higher education than elementary school, the only jobs they could find were working in the orchards. They would pick and thin apples during the summers, and prune trees during the cold winters. As soon as I was of working age, I would go out into the fields with them from early sunrise until the intense heat scorched our necks and faces. At a young age, I learned the harsh reality of what the daily life of an immigrant is. The long hours of hard work in the unforgiving heat of the sun; all for the low wages they were paid. These experiences in the orchard instilled in me a sense of drive to further my education and work hard to help families that were at a disadvantage as

As a first-generation Mexican American, I am the product of two cultures merged into one. Like many immigrants, my parents left behind their homeland and came with just the clothes on their back. They were fish out of water when they first arrived in America. They came here with hopes of pursuing the American Dream but soon realized that they weren't going to be the ones to achieve the American Dream. They worked hard so that my younger brother and I could have a shot at it. So they’ve educated us and passed the Dream along to us. The hardships experienced by my parents have inspired me to take on my own challenges. Because of the sacrifices my parents made, I am where I am today. It's an unspoken responsibility that one day I will give back to those who gave me so much.

Speaking English with friends from Saudi Arabia it’s a perfect example of how a personal experience can open up your eyes and realize that acquiring another language it’s an open door to many places you’ve never expected to have access to. I would say that a major challenge for me was the TOEFL test I took when I applied to a U.S. High School. Actually I did not get accepted in that school because of my low TOEFL results, and that never brought me down.

The most significant challenge I have faced was when I was growing up was reading. Reading is one of the most important things it was hard for me to say some words that I thought I was never gonna learn to read ever even if they were just small words or big words I struggle so much while growing up. When I was

For eighteen years now my parents have influenced me to do my best in academics and extracurricular activities. Both of my parents have gone to college and both have had successful careers. My dad was a highly recognized Police Chief for Waukesha County and is now on the

I was born in Merida, Mexico. That special day my father was in prison, he would leave our family by my fourth birthday. It would take me eight years to reunite with him in America. With two sisters and a single mother, I became the man of the house at a young age. Neither of my parents finished a high school education. I held my first job at age seven cleaning windshields at stoplights for any available change, in an effort to alleviate my mother’s burdens. My life experiences have taught me resiliency, hard work, and determination.

My parent’s both have very hard working jobs which have inspired me to work not just hard but to my fullest extent. Money is not the only benefit, but accomplishing my goals and desires are. My mother gets what she can every week cleaning houses in the Redlands, and my father takes two buses, and one train until reaching North Miami six days a workweek. All their sacrifice is for me to have a roof and food at home, this way we can afford our duplex in Homestead. We are a low-income family in Florida who have no other family members but ourselves. Having to adjust to a new community, learning a new culture based on other traditions and an altogether new terminology has been difficult, but overcoming many of these struggles have taught me that one day I will be capable to achieve my ends. I will be helping the community that one day welcomed me, as one of their

Growing up, my parents sacrificed endlessly to ensure I would thrive in America; they were Mexican immigrants, weren’t fluent in English, and struggled to assimilate into American culture. Their barriers wouldn’t stop them from presenting me with an opportunistic life. I didn’t have the luxury of parents that had proper schooling; all they taught me was to work hard and to not allow anything to bring me down. I was raised in a low-income neighborhood, and as my peers were entangling themselves in drugs and gangs, I focused on my schooling. I knew the importance of education and all the fruits of labor that would eventually come with it. I didn't’ fall into peer pressure, I surpassed the expectations of my family, and most importantly, did not fall into the negative statistics that correlate with Latinos.

Born in the Dominican Republic, at the age of 10, my family and I migrated to this country to fulfill the American dream. As a girl from a small Spanish speaking island, I had to maneuver through the public school system in order to achieve the goals that I once never thought I would conquer. With language being the ultimate challenge, I fundamentally had to learn the English language on my own. Yet through the frustration of inequalities and lack of resources presented to children in inner-city communities, ambition grew inside me. My mother would say to me “Everyone deserves to have a fair share of what they loved to do.” However, at the same time, I was also taught that nothing is easily handed to you, and that “if you want it, then you have to work for it.” I live by the words of my mother, and when I receive the opportunity to continue my education at

My parents and grandmother are large influencers of who I am today and who I aspire to be in the future. My mother, father and grandmother couldn’t be more different from each other, but they all have one aspect in common: they’re immigrants. My parents moved to Florida in the 90s, in the hopes of providing a better life not only for themselves, but their future family. Once my sister and I were born, my grandmother moved to Florida to take care of us while my parents were working. My mother, father and grandmother have each instilled lessons of their journeys and hardships that come from being an immigrant in America. These lessons have shaped me into the person I am today.

The most significant challenge that I faced is culture difference. Born in Indonesia, continuing education on America and being an international student has not been easy on me. This has been an issue for me when I leave high school early and when to a community college in Seattle. At that time, I was not even 18 years old and having difficulty when communicating with people.

As a child, I optically canvassed my parents struggle to build a life for our family in America. Like so many immigrants, they experience inauspicious commencements. My father eventually secured a position working at a gift shop store in Manhattan which was enough to pay the rent, bills, etc. However, it wasn't enough for your own necessary needs such as clothing and food. Throughout my 16 years of

I am a 17 year old teenager born and brought up in India up to the age of 6, who never imagined that his destiny will bring him to the United States. If it wasn’t for my father, I’ll still be going to school in India without ever knowing that this other half of the world even existed. Luckily, my dad decided to take the initiative to come to the United States so that my family and I all could have a brighter future ahead of us which wouldn’t have been possible in India due to tough circumstances that were facing. For example, from having to pay tuition every month, for having electricity on about 2 or 3 hours straight was the struggle that my family and I faced on a daily basis. This is why I am blessed that I came into a new world that is filled with the love, kindness, and opportunity. In a way, the world is the same for everyone but it’s our own individual choices what separates us from one another. The opportunity for a better life led my dad to come to California which gave the affect to make my life what it is now and I wouldn’t give that up for anything else.

The greatest obstacle I have ever faced in my life has been, and will always be: language barriers. When I was approximately six years old, my family decided it was time for me to attend an afternoon English school in addition to my morning education in Spanish. At the time I was still in Bolivia and the process for my family's documentation had just started. I did my best to learn the content that I could memorize, however, I never put the same effort in the spoken part of the course. My lack of effort in the spoken field affected me greatly six years later when our paperwork had been approved and my siblings and I moved to the U.S. As much as I bragged about being bilingual to my family, I realized shortly after my arrival to the United States that it wasn't true; I understood what people said, but it was in vain if I couldn't respond and express myself to those around me.

The most impactful challenge that I have faced is moving away for the first time. When I was fifteen years old, my mother announced that we would be moving from Compton, California to Desert Hot Springs, California. The house that my family and I resided in was passed down from my great-grandmother and most of my family, including myself, grew up in that house. It was hard to take in because I was in the last quarter of my sophomore year of high school, and I had already established my group of friends. Prior to moving, I vowed that at my new school, I wouldn’t go out of my way to make friends or join a clique. My principal priority was getting good grades and self-growth. When I started attending DHSHS, it was a difficult transition from my old high school, Dominguez High School. Everything about the two schools were different.