How do you help prepare students for life after college?

  

The best preparation I can give to students for life after college is to teach them love and respect for other languages and cultures. In a world increasingly more complex and diverse, students need to be able to communicate with people from different backgrounds and ways of life. I also encourage my students to travel, to see the world from multiple perspectives, and to become life-long learners. If they can but once put themselves in the place of others, they will show consideration for other peoples and other cultures and will become ambassadors for peace and world unity.

Extras:

Influences: The biggest influences in my life were my mother and her sister, my tía Aura. They taught me the importance of education for women. They supported and encouraged me throughout the years, and they helped me become the person who I am today. In a sexist, “machista” society like the one I grew up, these women were the best and long lasting role models in my life.

Little-known facts: I love cats. One my favorite poems is Pablo Neruda’s “Oda al gato.”  My favorite way to relax is to read the New Yorker with my cat, Miss Lily on my lap.

Educational background: I did my undergraduate studies in Bogotá, Colombia, and my graduate studies in the U.S. and Mexico. It is through these educational experiences that I learned the value of traveling and studying abroad, and which I try to instill in my students.