Biography

My name is Yitzel Gonzalez. I am a Junior at New Mexico State University, currently pursuing a degree in Social Work, focusing on helping the needs on immigrant people. I was born in Phoenix, Arizona, but spent most of my younger years in Chihuahua, Mexico. I later moved to Puerto Palomas, Chihuahua, at the age of 6. I had to cross the border for 12 years to attend school until I graduated from Deming High School. I started working in the fields at the age of 14, where I learned to appreciate the importance of studying and becoming something in life. That time working left me with many lessons that I will never forget.

Last semester, I had the opportunity to work as a Resident Assistant (RA) at Garcia Hall in the Nursing LLC, where I was responsible for 45 nursing students and organizing events for them. Being an RA taught me many lessons, one of which was how to connect with the residents and handle certain situations, including working with the police and firefighters. I learned how to create effective events to strengthen the community and help students find the resources the school offers. I had the honor of working with the nursing program and its faculty to create events for nursing students, allowing them to learn more about the field and where they could find the necessary resources.

This summer, I had the opportunity to intern with the Children's Reading Alliance program, where I learned many things and valuable lessons about how it’s never too early to teach children to read. The organization is dedicated to the literacy education of young children, serving families in Doña Ana County. CRA aims to strengthen home-based literacy habits in both Spanish and English, contributing to success in school and life. This program addresses the need for early literacy parent support services for caregivers (parents, grandparents, older siblings, family friends, licensed caregivers, etc.) of children who have limited or no access to early literacy services and resources through other public or private education agencies. The program reaches out to families in underserved areas through its network of facilitators.