Ismely Lorente

            My name is Ismely and I am a Cuban immigrant. I am 20 years old and I have been living in the United States for almost five years now, which means that I was 16 years old when I first stepped on this country. As many would agree that is a very difficult age for any person, now imagine adding to it such a huge transition. However, if they ask me now if I regret ever coming here, my answer is definitely no. It is true that I have had very difficult times when I have felt out of place; when I have missed the family and friends I grew up with so much that I would cry myself to sleep. Still, despite all that, I feel very fortunate for having the opportunity of pursuing my dreams, even those that I once thought were impossible.

          There were many reasons that motivated me to take the decision of leaving everything I knew to come here and start my life over. The main reason at that time was my wish to see my father again. He left Cuba when I was 8 years old to come here as a political refugee and I did not see him again until I got here. The other reason, and now my main goal, was my dream to get my bachelor degree in any career field I chose, not one that was assigned to me for the government. I wanted to spend my life doing what I like and be as good as I could for me. I wanted to be able to choose freely on any aspect of my life and have the possibilities of going as far as I decided to.

           All those factors together kept me focus from day one and have been my motivation behind every step I have taken regarding my education. It has been a long way going from high school to the university but I have had a lot Of Support from my entire family, specially my mother. She was the one who stressed in me since I had use of reason how important having an education is and how my future depends on it. Every day that I see her going to work in that factory and I realize all the sacrifices she has made so I can have a better life makes me appreciate all the opportunities I have been offered. For her and for myself I put all my efforts into my career.

           It was somehow hard in the beginning to keep up with school because everything about it was so different to what I was used to in Cuba. I remember how terrified I was my first day in school. According to my age and my previous grades in Cuba, I was placed as a sophomore in a public high school at Miami, where I lived for the time being. Of course I had no friends but I was not so worry about that as I was about not speaking or understanding English for that matter. Luckily for me Miami is a city full of Spanish speaking people, so a high number of teachers in high school were bilingual and I counted with all the help I needed learning the language and getting by with classes. My sophomore and junior year there I was enrolled in the ESOL program, which allowed me to take bilingual classes. As part of that program I got to travel to Washington D.C. as a way to understand and get closer to the American history. I started taking more and more classes Just in English as I became more knowledgeable in English. By my senior year all my classes were regular and I was ready to take the required HSCT test and pass it. Graduating from high school was the biggest challenge of my life and at that point I realized all the obstacles I had overcome, and all the others that were yet to come. High School experiences also influenced my social life. During those years I developed new friendships with others kids that were in the same position I was. I became more dependent on myself because, contrary to the teachings in Cuba, this education system encourages the student to make their own choices about their courses.

           After graduation, on 2000, my mother and I moved to Bradenton because she lost her job could not found anything else. Our financial situation was not good and we hoped to have more opportunities here. On my part, I wanted to -go on with my education and go to college, but classes were not free as before. I had to pay for tuition and could not afford it. However, I learned from my high school counselor about Financial Aid and how the Government could help me pay my studies. I was approved and by September following graduation I enrolled in Manatee Community College. Again I had to face the challenge of a higher level education when I was not too confident of my fluency in English yet. Still, I managed to pass all my courses with very good grades. I was selected to be part of the Dean List and the All American Scholarship. After two years I graduated and received my A.A. degree. I have the best experiences from those college years. For a start I met a lot of great people there, especially who is now my best friend. It was during that time that I got my first job at the Manatee County Sheriff s Office as a switchboard operator, a job that I still keep.

           I feel like I achieved many things during those years. Nevertheless I did not plan on conforming. Ever since I enrolled in MCC I decided it would be a stepping-stone because my long-term goal was to transfer to the University of South Florida. That is exactly what I did as soon as got my A.A. degree. USF was my choice mainly because it is relatively close home and that would make my studies more affordable. Still, that was not the only reason for I did some research on the school and its reputation as one of the best in the state of Florida, plus the variety of curses programs confirmed my decision. Besides I felt really welcomed during all my transfer process, especially by the Enlace Program's staff and members in general to whom I completely identify as part of the Latino community. Their interest in helping the new student to make their university experience the best possible really won me over. Also, being able to be part of the Latino Scholarship and their interest in me to get it proved to me that there were people I could turn to if I needed it.

           I started the fall semester a little more confident thanks to the good impression that the university staff caused on me. Although I have to say that the 4 classes I took this term were really demanding on me and many times I felt overwhelmed. That did not keep me from enjoying them to the fullest though, and I have to admit that I have learned a lot from these. I have noticed some improvement in my writing skills, which I think is due to the 2 literature classes I had and all the papers that I had to turn in. My other 2 classes were psychology related ones and my favorites since that's my major. Taking them reaffirmed my interest in that career and showed me more closely what it is all about. I cannot tell how well I did on them though, because I just took my finals yesterday and I have not got my grades yet. Whatever happens I am looking forward to my next semester now. My new resolutions are to study harder and try to spare some time between classes and work to get more involved in the university events, Psychology researches, and Enlace activities.

          Every day in my life since I got to this country represents a new experience, a new challenge and a new opportunity I try to seize to the maximum. I have learned to work for what I want and I would not want it other way because at the end whatever I accomplish I am going to appreciate it better. As I said before I have had bad times full of frustration when I felt lost and defeated, but now when I look back I am grateful for those too because they made me stronger and more confident on myself. I know I can do anything I want to if my mind is set on it and nothing or no one is going to change that.

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