I grew up in a humble house in Mexico City.  I am the second oldest of three sisters and one brother.  My parents had to work very hard and suffered several hardships to send us to school.  They wanted us to have a better life than what they had.    

In 1991, I finished 9^th grade in Mexico.  At that time Mexico had the highest unemployment rate, therefore my family immigrated to Chicago, Illinois.  Here in the United States, I graduated high school with honors and ranked 7th among my graduating class.  I wanted my parents to realize their accomplishments, and enrolled at the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC).  While in college, I worked as a teacher’s aid and tutor in mathematics and chemistry to earn extra cash.  Additionally, I participated in co-op/internship program with various companies in the field of engineering to help prepare myself in engineering career.  I graduated UIC with a Bachelor of Science degree in Chemical Engineering.  This was a great accomplishment for myself… being the first one in my family and generation to graduate from high school and obtain a degree in a credited university.    

After I graduated from college, I received various job offers in many states.  I accepted the Process Engineering Position with Chevron Chemical Company in Baytown, Texas.  Chevron was one of the companies I had the opportunity to work while I was enrolled at UIC.  I worked at the Chevron Baytown facility as a Chemical engineer supporting manufacturing of polyethylene (plastic).  In June of 2001, I wed my best friend (in Houston), Miguel.  One year later, I decided to change careers in order to pursue another goal…I wanted to start a family.  The opportunity of teaching presented itself when a friend told me about the shortage of bilingual teachers in Texas and the Houston ISD ACP program.  Additionally, it will allow me to spend more time at home.  I retired from engineering profession after 3 years, enrolled in the ACP program, and begin my new career at Cornelius Elementary.

I have been teaching 1^st grade bilingual for 5 years.  At Cornelius, I have numerous goals for myself to accomplish.  One of which is to provide the basic skills necessary for each of the student to have the opportunity to pursue a professional career.  I have great expectations for each one of them.  In addition, I am very fortunate to be the mentor for two very talented teachers, Mrs. Arzapala and Mrs. Fuentes, both teaching 1st grade bilingual.   We have formed a very dynamic team, and I thank them for their trust and friendship.

Today, I am a proud mother of two children, Zachary and Sophia.  They bring happiness, joy, and excitement to my day, and provide me the inspiration to be an educator.  And to my beloved husband, he has provided me the continual support with my career.  I know that I can always count on his support.  Lastly, the people at Cornelius, thank you for the opportunity to grow, share, and develop our journey as educators, as a ‘family’ and therefore make me a better teacher.