GEAR UP Alumni Leadership Academy 2013-2014: Alumni Leader in the Republic of China (Taiwan)

Everyday, my shirt is always wet when I arrive at the Chinese Language Center at the National Cheng Kung University in Tainan, Taiwan. It is only a ten minute walk from the dormitories to the center but the heat and humidity is something that you cannot hide from. I am a big person but I know I am not that big to end up walking off the sidewalk. Here in Tainan, the sidewalks have become parking lots for the many mopeds that are used each day as a popular mode of transportation. Each day is an adventure. Each day is a blessing. Each day I learn new things about myself and always remember the different people and organizations in my life that made me who I am today.

The other day I was sitting a dumpling restaurant eating lunch. I was thinking about how grateful I was to be in Taiwan studying abroad and learning a language that I find to be very fascinating. Then I thought to myself, "How in the world did I receive this wonderful opportunity?!" Sometimes when I have free time this question always pops in my mind. I always know the answer to it though... It is all because of GEAR UP.

Opportunities to study abroad and travel to different places is something that I would have never dreamed of doing during my late middle school and early high school days. GEAR UP was there to help me look in the right places. Multiple workshops and sessions that GEAR UP held at my school about the University of Hawai‘i was what got me. I knew I wanted to travel and college was the only way for my to reach that awesome dream.

In just my two years of college I have interned in New York City, Washington, D.C. and have done community service in Guatemala City, Guatemala. Now, I am in Taiwan learning Chinese and also learning about Taiwanese culture and life. I am happy that I got to experience all these wonderful opportunities and I thank GEAR UP for making me a ambitious and passionate person.

One thing that GEAR UP taught me was always remembering where I come from. I grew up in a community where many students from immigrant families do not have the support needed to make it to and through college. GEAR UP was the backbone that I needed to break down all the stereotypes of my community and use my struggles to achieve my goals.

I love programs such as GEAR UP so much that I plan to do something similar in the future. Education has been very important to me since my involvement in GEAR UP that I hope to one day do the same for the high school students in the community that I grew up in. Being selected as a GEAR UP Alumni Leader is an honor. It is honor to meet the 29 other GEAR UP Alumni whose lives were also changed through the power of GEAR UP.

I have been in Taiwan for over a month now but my passion for helping high school students have not ended. In the past two weeks, I have visited two different school in Tainan to talk about the importance of higher education and embracing one's story. I visited both Deguang Catholic High School and the National Tainan First Senior High School in Tainan. Here are photos of me speaking to the students:

Speaking About College

Girls from National Tainan First Senior High School

Just like the students from many high schools in the United States, they did not know how to ask for help when it comes to applying for colleges. I found it interesting how their questions were exactly the same questions that many students ask me when talking about the college application process. My presentation consisted of giving them the confidence to embrace their story and believe in themselves when applying for college. I tried to give them as much information in a fun and interesting way. The workshops during the GEAR UP leader week in Washington, D.C. helped me to definitely prepare for talks like this. I even talked to the students about programs such as GEAR UP and there were amazed that programs like this exist in other countries. Taiwan's educational system is really different from the US but that didn't stop me from trying to motivate these students about being passionate about what they love doing and using that passion for the future.

As my time gets shorter here in Taiwan, I am making sure that I learn as much about the language and culture of the people in this part of the world. I cannot wait to get back home to work with the many students in Hawai‘i conquer the grueling college application process.

GEAR UP for life! #gearupworks

Here are photos of things I've seen in Taiwan so far: