Spotlight Series: Gabriella Valdez

Born and raised on the South Side of San Antonio, 加布里埃拉·瓦尔迪兹有一个独特的职业目标，那就是成为联邦政府的科学技术和武器分析师. After graduating from McCollum High School, 她决定在帕洛阿尔托学院学习应用数学和生物学，开始她的梦想工作之旅. What may seem a far-off goal to many, 瓦尔迪兹将她的学术兴趣与她对语言的热爱和对不同文化的好奇心结合起来，实现了这一目标.

This spring, Valdez was awarded the 2019 David L. Boren Scholarship, a fully-paid, 为希望在传统海外留学项目中代表性不足的国家的语言技能和文化知识方面进行投资的本科生提供为期一年的经验, specifically those relevant to national security. Among 851 applicants, Valdez was one of only 244 recipients.

"I put a lot of effort into this. I researched a lot, so it feels pretty honorable. 这对我来说是一个扩展我的职业生涯和个人成长的机会。. “我知道他们在寻找一个专注、开放的学生, who did the research, who wants to make an effort and help national security. I'm excited to finally establish my career path."

As she prepares for the next stage in her journey, Valdez很荣幸成为为数不多的社区大学生之一，也是帕洛阿尔托学院第一位被选为博伦奖学金获得者的学生.

“这个项目竞争非常激烈，主要面向四年制的学生... 这种留学项目将永远改变她对世界的看法, how she views herself, and how she views her nation. 这将开阔她的视野，只有出国旅行才能使她未来的机会成倍增加," said Katherine Doss, interim vice president of college services. “这个奖项再次证明了我们的学生是多么出色和有成就, 以及帕洛阿尔托学院如何支持我们的学生一起实现更大的梦想和更大的成就."

瓦尔迪兹获得了非洲旗舰语言倡议奖学金, through which recipients get the opportunity to learn French, Portuguese, Swahili, Akan, or Wolof in Western or Southern Africa. Valdez is going to Senegal, 在那里她将学习沃洛夫语，并直接与当地的人和文化互动.

“我选择学习沃洛夫语并去塞内加尔旅行，因为这是很少有人选择的语言之一, and I kind of like that," said Valdez. “体验他们的文化会拓宽我对文化和宗教的看法. 它也是一个发展中国家，所以它也会改变我对生活的看法. 它会让我珍惜和欣赏我在美国所拥有的一切."

Valdez will first travel to the University of Florida, 在她过渡到塞内加尔之前，她将在那里开始强化学习沃洛夫语的课程. After spending the summer in Florida, 她将在塞内加尔呆九个月，让自己沉浸在这个国家.

Following their international experiences, Boren获得者必须承诺在联邦政府进行国际重点实习. Valdez将在学习项目结束后立即在塞内加尔实习，将她的新语言和经验付诸实践.

瓦尔迪兹说:“完成这个项目后，我将得到一份实习工作，所以这真的让我受益匪浅。. "Even without the internship, I'll always have this experience under me, plus [learning] a whole new language. I'm just excited to be in Senegal."

“我们的学生利用这个机会的价值是无价的. 这种类型的奖励计划为学生提供了巨大的机会," said Vangie Velez-Cobb, assistant professor of Spanish, 是谁赞助了瓦尔迪兹的申请并帮助她度过了整个过程. “对于我们帕洛阿尔托学院的学生来说，这些政府机构的工作似乎遥不可及, 但当我向学生们介绍博仁奖学金项目时, 我让他们知道，只要愿意，任何人都可以申请(并被选中), effort, and perseverance is applied."

This experience will not only influence Valdez, 但这也能让她与朋友们分享她的经验和知识, family, and peers. 她很高兴能促进文化多样性，激励他人大胆地迈向个人成长.

"Coming back, talking about [my experience] openly with other people, 对我来说，告诉人们去扩大自己，变得更加多样化是很重要的. Yes, we can get diversity from another university; but to go to another country, become a part of their culture, and integrate yourself with those people is a lot different," said Valdez. "A lot of people [don't] travel too much, 我真的希望我们这一代和后代继续与他人交谈. When you talk to people, you learn and grow as a person."