1. What sparked your interest in Latin American Studies?
Silva:
The Latin American region is very different from anything I had previously experienced in my life, and even while I was in high school I knew that I was interested in learning about how the region worked.
2. Why was UCSD a good fit for you?
Silva: UCSD was a good fit for me because it blended the strengths of a large research institution with a small liberal arts feel. I really benefited from the research aspect of UCSD. For example, my thesis advisor is a well-respected academic in the area I wrote about and I published a chapter in a book with one of the country’s foremost immigration experts. At the same time, being a part of Thurgood Marshall College allowed me to be part of a close community of students. I didn’t feel lost in the shuffle that I see at other UCs, and I was able to be very close to the College’s staff.
3. What activities were you involved in while you were at UCSD and what did you learn from the campus involvement?
Silva: I was involved in a lot of different student organizations, and I also worked in K-12 outreach for the University. Probably most important were my student leadership roles on Associated Students and the Thurgood Marshall College Student Council. The experience of working with the University’s professional staff and faculty turned out to be really advantageous when I joined “the real world.”
4. What accomplishment are you most proud of from your time as a student at UCSD?
Silva: My freshman year, I was part of a group of students who pushed against a proposal that would have deprived students accused of academic misconduct from any representation at all. This was probably my most important “student leadership” accomplishment, and was a great lesson in coalition and relationship building. Academically, I participated in a research project that did field research in Mexico and published a book that I co-wrote. It was a really neat experience – it showed that academics can really be hands-on and fun.
5. Tell me about your experience studying abroad in Spain. Would you recommend it to students at UCSD?
Silva: I wouldn’t just recommend it to UCSD students; I would require it. My only regret is spending a semester and not a year in Spain. I spoke Spanish pretty well before going to Spain, but the experience definitely cemented my fluency in the language. I use Spanish every day at work, so the dividends are still paying off. But even if people don’t go for language reasons, it’s really important for Americans to experience life outside of the United States. Our world view in America is really narrow, and international experience helps bring more ideas and perspectives into our lives.
6. What advice would you give to an incoming freshman student about succeeding at UCSD?
Silva: UCSD is a great place, but it also has its challenges. I found life in the dorms to be really isolating, and the only way I was able to break that was by getting involved in different student groups. I was able to find people with the same interests as me, and some of those folks I met as a freshman are still my best friends.
7. What are some "outside the classroom" life lessons you learned as a UCSD student?
Silva: Working in K-12 outreach was really eye-opening to me. I had attended a public high school, but where I grew up, college was an expectation, not an option. That wasn’t the case for many of the students that I served in San Diego; many were high school seniors who were woefully ill-informed about college options. My time there was probably the most important factor in pushing me toward Teach for America after graduation.
8. What is your favorite memory from your time at UCSD?
Silva:
My freshman year, I helped put on Thurgood Marshall’s Cultural Celebration. I woke up at 5 a.m. to start setting up, and I remember that we had purchased something like 150 flags of the world and hung them from a rope. So that morning, we were trying to hang the ropes from high places like street lights, but we had no clue how to get them up there without a 30-foot ladder. So we tied bagels to the ends of the rope and spent about an hour hurling a flag-laden rope with a bagel as a counter-weight over light poles.
9. What was it like to transition from UCSD student to alumna?
Silva: I still feel more like a student than an alumnus. My transition involved graduating, spending a few days moving from San Diego to the Bay Area, then attending Teach for America’s seven-week “Institute” before starting my teaching job. It’s been non-stop since graduation, and I’m really looking forward to this summer when I get to relax for the first time in a really long time.
10. What are you doing now and what are your career goals?
Silva: I’m a middle school English teacher in East Palo Alto, which is between San Francisco and San Jose. The vast majority of my students are English language learners (mostly Spanish speaking), and they are behind. When I started with them this year, they read on average at a 4th grade level. It’s been a tough year, but I think it’s important for people to get involved in high-need situations such as underperforming schools.
I’m still pondering my career goals, which I think is a terrific thing for current students to know. I’m considering law, school administration, and academia as long-term career options.
11. What advice do you have for recently graduated seniors?
Silva: Take a year off before grad school, law school, Teach for America, Peace Corps, or whatever you do next. Just get a job and do whatever for a bit while you decompress from UCSD. And it’s fine not to have any idea what you’re doing career-wise for a few years. My friends who haven’t jumped into anything too fast have been happier and more fulfilled with their eventual choice.
12. Where do you see yourself in 10 years?
Silva: Still not sure – I could be finishing grad or law school or starting a job as a principal somewhere. I love California, so hopefully I’ll find myself here. It’s too cold anywhere else!
|