My work began when I attended a general meeting hosted by the NYSYLC.
I listened to stories of undocumented youth who had been arrested for protesting the law which bans undocumented youth from accessing certain institutions of higher education.

Before this moment, I did not think other undocumented people existed. In this meeting and across other states, undocumented youth were brave enough to tell their stories, risking deportation and more, to bring visibility to our contributions, to our existence, and our humanity.

At only 20 years old, this moment transformed me and moved me. From this point forward, I joined and nurtured spaces to advocate for NYS Dream Act, a law that would open up state-funded financial aid to undocumented youth, and efforts to end deportations of community members.

This work set the foundation for my advocacy as a teacher for my immigrant and multilingual students.