You can especially feel a sense of community at Hostos if you’ve been a student there since middle school. The professors at Lawrence are also really caring! I’ve had classes that were simply comprised of the Professor, me, and two other students. The result was that you’re not just another face; professors knew who you are and they cared about your success.
The surrounding community, in Appleton, WI is sehr schön (very nice)! The Fox Valley River flows through this college town, providing a nice escape from the city life that I’m used to. There’s a little downtown with stores, cafes, museums, restaurants, bars, and the Performing Arts Center (PAC) which brings in touring Broadway shows! I’ve seen more Broadway shows here than I have in New York! While I have truly adored and treasured my college experience, going to Wisconsin for college meant that when I walked out of my door I saw no one who looked like me. It’s not like Hostos where white students were the minority. There are Black and Brown students, but I wasn’t used to seeing so few of us. That was something that made me feel almost like a walking attraction.
In a classroom of 15 students, with me being the only student with a diverse background, I felt as though I wasn’t good enough to be in that room. Over time, I’ve come to understand that I have earned my place in that classroom and it inspires me to become a professor so that I can be a cheerleader and advocate for students of color. You may not meet many people with similar backgrounds as you or who grew up in the projects, like I did, but at the same time, it’s interesting to see how people who aren’t from the Bronx are like.
