My mother emigrated from Mexico and worked hard to raise me alone with little guidance or support. From the first grade on, I would walk myself home, cook myself dinner and wait for her to come home late at night. I never imagined I would have the opportunity to go to college and, at times, didn’t see myself completing high school.
When I became the first person in my family to graduate from university, I felt like I was graduating for us all. My college experience was arduous. I had to pioneer the road to success through trial and error often with my family looking to me for guidance instead of the other way around. My upbringing and undergraduate experience helped me understand the value of hard work and put me on the path to want to help others in similar situations.
After graduation I moved to Colombia to work for the Ministry of Education and lead an international team of volunteer English teachers in a remote region of the country. Here I had the opportunity to work with and learn from a talented team of nonprofit coordinators and saw the impact someone with the proper business training could have on their community. In my current position at RefugeeOne, a Chicago-based agency that resettles refugees and immigrants, I channel the skills gained from my work abroad to teach English as a second language and assist the development team in researching and writing grants for the English program.
I have seen how low-funding can cripple nonprofit work which is why I aim to utilize my fundraising and communications background as a director of development to reach wider audiences and secure new funding sources for my organization.
I know there is still much room for growth which is why I want to take advantage of the versatility of the MBA to build on my past experiences and discover my potential as a nonprofit leader. While I would like to be an asset to my organization by strengthening my abilities in communications and fundraising, I am eager and open to discovering new talents throughout the course of my program.
My ultimate goal is to found an organization that drives education reform in communities similar to the one I grew up in and my MBA will be an essential step towards achieving that goal.
Through my experience, an effective global leader is experienced in international relations and passionate about driving social change which is why I am eager to learn from Professor Abol Jalilvand whose expertise in global administration will guide me as I prepare for similar international roles. In my first semester, I will join Loyola’s Net Impact to forge lasting friendships with my colleagues and strengthen my understanding of sustainable nonprofit management and consulting.
By my second year, I plan to contribute to the Leadership Center for Social Enterprise and Responsibility to collaborate with colleagues in creating imaginative new organizations for meeting vital social needs. Lastly, Quinlan’s concentration in International Business will prepare me to undergo a semester abroad in either Spain or the Dominican Republic where I can build a global network and cultivate a broad knowledge of business practices.
I will bring my background in international project management and communications, my ability to work fluently in Spanish and my dedication to nonprofit management to Quinlan and ultimately to my career as a nonprofit leader. As a first step towards achieving my goal, I have begun to learn the global language of Farsi. Armed with an MBA from Quinlan and the ability to converse in multiple languages, I will be ready to drive social change as an effective nonprofit leader.
