regina_torrado

I experienced a lot of changes in my environment growing up. When I was eight years old, the world that I had grown up to know and love suddenly transformed into a new world of unknown and uncertainty. I was born and raised in Cancun, Mexico, where I lived for the first eight years of my life. Summer of 2011, my parents decided to move to Houston, TX for better educational and life opportunities. I struggled a lot with the transition during my early childhood due to my lack of knowledge of the English language. In my early childhood, my life was filled with insecurities and identity uncertainties. The majority of my insecurities didn’t come from the way I looked, or the way I acted, but rather from the way I talked. I realized very early on that I spoke differently than my peers. At the time I remember hating being different. I spent a large majority of my early elementary and middle school days alongside my ESL tutors in the adjoining room to my respective grade-level classroom. I felt inferior and different from the rest of my classmates. It felt like I was stuck playing a game of catch-up. It felt like I was only allowed to walk the race while everyone else got to run. I am a firm believer that experiencing all this hatred for being linguistically different at a young age solidified my career aspirations and truly fueled my ambition to do whatever it took to meet my goal. Now, this didn't happen overnight, and I would be lying if I said it was an easy process because it wasn't. I was able to assimilate into American culture pretty well. When I got to high school, I was faced with the task of planning out my future career and determining what my next step in life was. I did not doubt that I too wanted to impact kid's lives in the way that mine was so early on, so I decided to pursue a degree in Psychology. I always found the field to be interesting and expansive, with so many career paths to be taken after graduation. Upon my expected graduation from Texas A&M University in the spring of 2026, I want to get a master's in Speech-Language Pathology. I find the concept of language truly fascinating, and I want my future to be intercorrelated with language facilitation and therapy of some sort because language is such a detrimental and crucial aspect of one’s survival and ability to thrive. I believe that given the necessary resources, every child can reach their highest potential regardless of language barriers and inhibitions. I want to give kids within marginalized communities the gift that I was given by my ESL tutor at the mere age of ten, hope and guidance. To help them understand that the person they are today is enough, and the person they will become tomorrow will be even stronger. I want to be the person who gives them the hope that I was given. To believe in them, like I was believed in. Most importantly, I want to make a difference within communities and better the world for generations that are to come.

I experienced a lot of changes in my environment growing up. When I was eight years old, the world that I had grown up to know and love suddenly transformed into a new world of unknown and uncertainty. I was born and raised in Cancun, Mexico, where I lived for the first eight years of my life. Summer of 2011, my parents decided to move to Houston, TX for better educational and life opportunities. I struggled a lot with the transition during my early childhood due to my lack of knowledge of the English language. I was stuck playing a game of catch-up, and if it wasn't for my English as a Second Language (ESL) tutor and various linguistic tutors, I would not be the person I am today. I spent a large majority of my early elementary and middle school days alongside my ESL tutors in the adjoining room to my respective grade-level classroom. I felt inferior and different from the rest of my classmates, but that feeling helped me solidify and fuel my future career aspirations and dreams. This didn't happen overnight, and I would be lying if I said it was an easy process because it wasn't. I was able to assimilate into the American culture pretty well. When I got to high school, I was faced with the task of planning out my future career and determining what my next step in life was. I had no doubt that I too wanted to impact kid's lives in the way that mine was so early on, so I decided to pursue a degree in Psychology. I always found the field to be interesting and expansive, with so many career paths to be taken after graduation. Upon my expected graduation from Texas A&M University in the spring of 2026, I want to get a master's in Speech-Language Pathology. If I were to win this scholarship, the money would go towards the funding of my master's program. My parents moved our family to a new country in hopes that my two older siblings and I become self-made and successful, and I want to prove to them that they made the right choice twelve years ago. By winning this scholarship I would be able to take a step in the right direction and make a difference. I hope to give kids who are experiencing the same things I once did and give them the most wonderful gift life has to offer, hope and guidance. I was lucky enough to be given a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that opened numerous doors toward my future, and by becoming a licensed SLP and ESL tutor, I hope to open as many doors as I can to at least one kid. Feeling lost and insecure is not a feeling anyone should ever have to experience, and that is my mission.

I am a leader, but not by the typical societal standards. I was never the captain of a sports team that led their team to victories, the oldest child that the younger ones look up to, or even the founder of a club or organization that stands in front of groups of people and delivers empowering and motivational speeches. Frankly, I am scared of speaking in front of crowds and have stage fright. I might not have some of the qualities and characteristics that society nowadays has deemed adequate for a leader to have, but that doesn't make me any less of a leader, and here is why. In my eyes, a leader isn't just someone that people look up to, because if that were the case I feel like the meaning of the word "leader" would diminish and simply become another adjective. I was born and raised in Mexico alongside my two older siblings, Francisco and Alexa. Being the youngest of three in my eyes immediately made me a follower. For as long as I can remember, the person that I looked up to and modeled myself after the most was my older sister Alexa. When I was eight years old, my parents decided to move to Houston, Texas in hopes of pursuing better educational and life opportunities. The majority of my childhood upon moving to the United States was filled with uncertainties and insecurities that seemed to affect every aspect of my life. These differences made me feel as far away from a leader as possible, but coincidentally they were also what helped me become a leader later in life. I struggled with the idea of being different all my childhood, and I would be lying if I said that it is not something that I still struggle with to this day. So why do I consider myself a leader? Thus far in my essay, I have seemed to touch upon all the reasons why I didn't think I could become a leader early in life, but the turning point came when I entered high school. In high school, I believed that the term "leader" was interchangeable with the word "popular". I figured that the most popular kids were the leaders of the school, and although that may have been true in certain aspects, it also made me realize that I had what it took to become a leader myself. I wasn't part of the popular group in high school or had any of the previous characteristics and standards set by society listed at the beginning for that matter. I consider myself a leader because I poise myself every day to become the best version of myself I can be, while simultaneously pushing all of those around me to do the same. I consider myself a leader because I use my differences to my advantage, helping others overcome obstacles and challenges I was once faced with as well. I consider myself a leader because I have a positive outlook and mentality in every aspect of my life. Lastly, I consider myself a leader because I don't let societal norms and expectations dictate my life and choices. A large majority of my life was spent believing I did not have what it took to become a leader. It wasn't until I realized that it was what I "didn't have" in life that set me apart from everyone else. And not being like everyone else makes you a leader in your way, it's simply up to you to decide how.

Growing up, my favorite comfort book was "The Perks of Being a Wallflower" by Kelsey McLendon. For as long as I can remember, I've always been a quiet and introverted individual. Growing up in my older sister's shadow led me to become even more secluded and I tended to keep to myself. Being three years younger than my sister meant that everything that I accomplished in my life, she had also accomplished years prior. I was outshined in every aspect of my life by someone who shouldn't have been considered a competition in the first place. The first time I read this book, I did not like it. I thought the story plot which consisted of an outcast navigating high school in hopes of finding his true self was so cliché. I thought it was such an unrealistic turn of events because I had previously decided that our place in the world was set in stone with no way of changing it. In retrospect, I realize that the reason I did not like the book when I first read it, was that I was just like the main character, Charlie. The book touched on some topics that I was at a refusal to accept, topics that applied to me. Years later, this has become one of my favorite books, because it reminds me that there is a place for everyone in this world along with a purpose. It reminds me that I don't have to be and act like my older sister who outshines me to be happy, that I just have to be me. When I grow up, I want to become a Speech Pathologist who focuses on language facilitation and rehabilitation of bilingual kids who struggle like I once did in my early childhood. When I was eight years old, my parents decided to leave Mexico for the United States. The challenges that I was posed with in my early childhood truly changed my life forever. Moving to a new country I was faced with a completely unknown and new environment. I became an outsider. Not knowing the language upon which the curriculum was created led me to what I like to call an infinite game of catch-up. Compared to my classmates, I was different in more ways than an eight-year-old should realize and care about. These differences led me to keep to myself even more, making me an outcast in my mind. As I grew up, my English as Second Language (ESL) teachers impacted me in ways beyond imaginable and ultimately solidified my career aspirations and life goals. Curiously enough, as I find myself rereading "The Perks of Being a Wallflower" in my later years, I have come to realize that a lot of the life lessons and morals that my ESL teachers taught me in my early years were outlined in the storyline of the book. The most valuable thing that I have learned from both my life experience thus far, as well as my favorite book, is that being different is one of the most amazing and fulfilling gifts life has to offer. I want to make an impact on the whole world, but my life mission will be complete if I impact a single child's life in the way that mine was impacted so early on. I want to pass on the gift that I was given through my many years of rereading "The Perks of Being a Wallflower", hope and guidance.

My mom always likes to talk about what she called my "quiet phase" in life. This stage of my life concluded with my first three years of elementary school in the United States. When I was eight years old, my parents decided to leave my birthplace, Cancun, Mexico, to chase after better educational opportunities and experiences. We packed everything up one summer and moved to Houston, Texas. I will never forget my first day of second grade, because at the time I was traumatized. The culture shock that I endured that day left me speechless. Spoiler alert, this isn't what my mom referred to when she referenced my "quiet phase". From the very start, I realized I was different. For starters, I had no idea what the strange language they were speaking (English) was. I looked different in the way that I had darker features and more body hair. Ultimately, I was different from the rest of my classmates, because I was Mexican. During the fifth-grade student fair, we met with various career field workers and learned more about each field. At the end of the day, we wrote down on a piece of paper what we wanted to do/be when we were older. On my slip of paper, I said I wanted to become the first female president of the United States. Now imagine how demolished and demotivated I felt when my classmates crushed my dreams with one simple sentence, "Well you can't ever be president, you are Mexican and that's not allowed". That very moment then led to a long period of embarrassment and hatred towards my nationality. I was embarrassed about being different than the rest of my peers, of being less than them. I struggled with embracing my nationality and ethnicity for the longest time. When I reached my middle school years, I had figured out "the perfect formula". If I was to dress like everyone else, act like everyone else, and even talk like everyone else (by trying my hardest not to have an accent), I would magically become one of them. I would refuse to speak Spanish in front of my friends and would hate it when my parents did so. My "perfect formula" obviously had one major flaw, I could change as many physical and verbal aspects as I wanted, but one thing I could never change was my ethnicity. It wasn't until later in life that I learned how meaningful and beneficial embracing my true ethnicity and nationality would be. Once I accepted that I was different, I started using it to my advantage. Instead of being embarrassed about being bilingual, I have now focused my career aspirations on helping bilingual children excel and reach their highest potential. I have come to realize what a beautiful and life-changing path was ahead of me for the longest time if only I had embraced it. But now that I have, I have never been prouder of where I come from and who I have become because of it. My "quiet stage" included my refusal to speak English. I hated the idea of being different, and if my language abilities were what caused my differentiation from my peers, then why speak? I asked my mom why she allowed me to do that, and she simply said "If I had forced you to love yourself for who you are and where you come from, you would have never changed". I am forever grateful for all the opportunities I have been given since the move, and forever in debt to my nationality and ethnicity.

Ten years ago, I was in the adjoining room of my 4th-grade classroom with an ESL teacher, learning the proper pronunciation of basic English words, while the rest of my classmates were working on increasing their reading levels and spelling. Where do I see myself in ten years? As one of the ESL teachers who impacted and changed my life in ways that at the time I did not know mattered. I moved to the United States not knowing a single word of English. I cannot pinpoint the moment in my life when I decided that I wanted to help young bilingual kids that were struggling in an environment filled with the unknown like I once had, but once my mind was made up, I was determined to do whatever it took to make a difference. Spanish was my first language. I was born and raised in Mexico, and when I moved to Houston, TX, I became introduced to a completely new environment and language. In my early childhood, my life was filled with insecurities and identity uncertainties. The majority of my insecurities didn’t come from the way I looked, or the way I acted, but rather from the way I talked. I realized very early on that I spoke differently than my peers. At the time I remember hating being different. I hated how during afternoon reading time in 4th grade I didn’t get to sit alongside my peers and read the same book as everyone. I felt so different from everyone else. Little did I know that it would take me many years to truly appreciate and wrap my head around the importance of being different. I have now learned that everyone is unique in their ways and has certain personal attributes and differences that make them who they are. I am a firm believer that experiencing all this hatred for being linguistically different at a young age solidified my career aspirations and truly fueled my ambition to do whatever it took to meet my goals. In my future career, I want the opportunity to give as many kids the advice and help that I wish someone would have given me when I was going through an era of transition, and help them work through those differences. I am currently pursuing an undergraduate degree in Psychology at Texas A&M University, and upon my expected graduation in 2026, I hope to continue on the path to getting a Master's in Speech-Language-Pathology (SLP). I find the concept of language truly fascinating, and I want my future to be intercorrelated with language facilitation and therapy of some sort, because language is such a detrimental and crucial aspect of one’s survival and ability to thrive. I believe that given the necessary resources, each and every child can reach their highest potential regardless of language barriers and inhibitions. In April 2024, I will be turning twenty-one years old. Many things have changed in the past ten years. A large majority of those changes would not have been possible if it weren’t for the help I received that helped me navigate the intimidating and uncomfortable process that comes with learning a new language and adaptations. I want to give bilingual kids the gift that I was given by my ESL tutor at the mere age of ten, hope and guidance. To help them understand that the person they are today is enough, and the person they will become tomorrow will be even stronger. I want to be the person who gives them the hope that I was given.

My mom always likes to talk about what she called my "quiet phase" in life. This stage of my life concluded with my first three years of elementary school in the United States. When I was eight years old, my parents decided to leave my birthplace, Cancun, Mexico, to chase after better educational opportunities and experiences. We packed everything up one summer and moved to Houston, Texas. I will never forget my first day of second grade, because at the time I was traumatized. The culture shock that I endured that day left me speechless. Spoiler alert, this isn't what my mom referred to when she referenced my "quiet phase". From the very start, I realized I was different. For starters, I had no idea what the strange language they were speaking (English) was. I looked different in the way that I had darker features and more body hair. Ultimately, I was different from the rest of my classmates, because I was Mexican. During the fifth-grade student fair, we met with various career field workers and learned more about each field. At the end of the day, we wrote down on a piece of paper what we wanted to do/be when we were older. On my slip of paper, I said I wanted to become the first female president of the United States. Now imagine how demolished and demotivated I felt when my classmates crushed my dreams with one simple sentence, "Well you can't ever be president, you are Mexican and that's not allowed". That very moment then led to a long period of embarrassment and hatred towards my nationality. I was embarrassed about being different than the rest of my peers, of being less than them. I struggled with embracing my nationality and ethnicity for the longest time. When I reached my middle school years, I had figured out "the perfect formula". If I was to dress like everyone else, act like everyone else, and even talk like everyone else (by trying my hardest not to have an accent), I would magically become one of them. I would refuse to speak Spanish in front of my friends and would hate it when my parents did so. My "perfect formula" obviously had one major flaw, I could change as many physical and verbal aspects as I wanted, but one thing I could never change was my ethnicity. It wasn't until later in life that I learned how meaningful and beneficial embracing my true ethnicity and nationality would be. Once I accepted that I was different, I started using it to my advantage. Instead of being embarrassed about being bilingual, I have now focused my career aspirations on helping bilingual children excel and reach their highest potential. I have come to realize what a beautiful and life-changing path was ahead of me for the longest time if only I had embraced it. But now that I have, I have never been prouder of where I come from and who I have become because of it. My "quiet stage" included my refusal to speak English. I hated the idea of being different, and if my language abilities were what caused my differentiation from my peers, then why speak? I asked my mom why she allowed me to do that, and she simply said "If I had forced you to love yourself for who you are and where you come from, you would have never changed". I am forever grateful for all the opportunities I have been given since the move, and forever in debt to my nationality and ethnicity.

Twelve years ago, I was in the adjoining room of my 2nd-grade classroom with an ESL teacher, learning the proper pronunciation of basic English words, while the rest of my classmates were working on increasing their reading levels and spelling. Where do I see myself in twelve years? As one of the ESL teachers who impacted and changed my life in ways that at the time I did not know mattered. When I was eight years old, my parents decided to move across the country. Having no say in their decision, I was frustrated and confused as to why they wanted to leave such a great place like Cancun, Mexico for the unknown. They tried to root the ideal of the American Dream vision, the educational opportunities, and how much I would benefit from the move, but I was in denial. Twelve years later, my life has been completely transformed, and I owe it all to my parent's decision to move across the country. I had always loved school. Reading and writing were my favorite subjects, but this time around, it came with a twist. I did not know or understand the language that I was reading. For the first couple of years upon moving to Houston, Texas, my life was filled with insecurities and identity uncertainties. The majority of my insecurities didn’t come from the way I looked, or the way I acted, but rather from the way I talked. I realized very early on that I spoke differently than my peers. Not knowing the language in which the curriculum was created impacted the early years of my education. For the majority of my elementary days, I was pulled aside into the adjoining room of my respective classroom, where I would meet with an ESL tutor. I was so angry with my parents at the time. I did not understand how moving to a new country for better educational opportunities would benefit me when I wasn't able to comprehend anything. My mom used to call that stage in my life the "quiet phase" because I barely spoke. I hated the idea of being different, and if my language abilities were what caused my differentiation from my peers, then why speak? My ESL teachers gave me hope, guidance, and ambition that fueled my future career goals. Throughout my time spent with linguistic therapists and ESL tutors, I realized that something good could come out of my parent's decision to move across the country. Most importantly, I realized that being different wasn't a bad thing and that it was one of the greatest and most fulfilling gifts life has to offer. Like Maggie, my life was once filled with the unknown and uncertainty. Overcoming those challenges at such an early age prepared me for what would become a lifetime of devotion and hard work. It taught me that although goals can be set for us, we are the ones that ultimately have to reach them. Twelve years ago, I was presented with the opportunity of a lifetime. I wasn't of age to make such a decision for myself, but if I had an opportunity to move across the country to follow my dreams now, I would not hesitate to do so. In my opinion, devotion and determination are some of the most important attributes one could have, and I want to make it my life goal to share them with kids that are in the same shoes that I was once in.