For people like us: A navigation of life and college

A multimedia project by Katrina Perce

December 10 2024

Julie Cruz Valle is a senior at the University majoring in Biology and minoring in Analytical Chemistry. Julie was born and raised in Las Vegas by her parents, whom both immigrated from Mexico in their late child to early teenage years. Her mother from Jalisco, Mexico, and her father from Puebla, Mexico, the two moved to Las Vegas to raise their family. 

Mexican culture is a large part of Julie’s life and plays a significant role in her upbringing. With “double cousins,” Julie feels she has an additional eight siblings to her family, considering their closer relationship. Julie carries these relationships closer to her, even miles away at college. 

Growing up, Julie was surrounded by a vibrant Hispanic community in Las Vegas. She explains that her first experience feeling different than others was after switching schools in the 3^rd grade, where she was the only Latina student in her class, of which remained for the following grade. Julie explains that she experienced racism from her classmates at just nine years old, being taunted for her race, taking a large toll on her. 

Reflecting on her first year in middle school, Julie recalls writing about the Mexican tradition of celebrating on December 24^th, calling for her teacher to pull her aside for a conversation to learn more about the tradition. 

When the time came to make a college decision, Julie knew she had to move away from home to gain the full college experience that she sought after. Being one of the oldest daughters, Julie is relied on heavily by her family, making the decision to move away hard on everyone in the household. 
Julie faced immense doubt from her extended family members, her aunts and uncles, who were insistent on staying nearby for college, or to skip college and head straight into the workforce. Being a first-generation student, Julie went through the college admissions process alone – applying for the University, financial aid, housing, and more on her own accord, waiting to present her family with all of the information as soon as she got accepted and her financial aid package. It was not until the day that she moved into her residence hall that her family accepted the change. 

Coming to college, Julie experienced a culture shock seeing the lack of students that looked like her. It was not until she walked into the First-Generation center on campus and explored further into the city of Reno, beyond the University area. 

Julie finds comfort in the community and the Hispanic people that she has met throughout her time at the University, finding people that she could relate to in times of stress at school. Specifically referencing issues with the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) after an update during the 2024 school year, Julie mentions the impact that such issues have on Hispanic students. 

Finding the value of including the designation to the University’s name, Julie points out that there are still things to be done. She encourages administration to reach out specifically to Hispanic students to gain a more realistic insight of where to fill in the gaps with resources in a way to truly benefit students.