Manuel Lira, who goes by Manny, is from Oxnard, California. Manuel is double-majoring in Communications, with an emphasis in Journalism, and Political Science. He is the youngest of three with two older sisters, Nancy and Karen. One of his sisters is also a current Cal Lutheran student, she’s a psychology major who will be graduating next year. His other sister is doing a nursing program at Santa Barbara City College. His dad’s name is Manuel as well so he’s Jr., and his mom, Paula, works here on campus. Lira is currently interning at United Way of Ventura County; he applied for the position through the Career Center. He has been there for the past month; he does marketing, videos, edits the newsletter, makes flyers for different programs, helps with accounting, etc. Also, Lira is currently on the Echo.
Some fun facts about Manny:
- Likes to play basketball with friends and watch it
- His favorite sports teams are the Lakers, Packers, and Yankees
- Enjoys reading books in his spare time
- He likes to take pictures and make videos at times
- Used to work at the Boys and Girls Club in the after school program
- He was a program aid, he would teach lessons and do arts and crafts.
- He was their coach for sports such as dodgeball and volleyball too.
Read on to learn more about the interesting life of Manuel Lira!HCCLU: Why did you decide to come to CLU?
ML: It’s close to home and I didn’t want to go far. My mom actually works here so it was obviously very cheap to come here. And two of my friends came here and recommended it. Class sizes are small and that is something I wanted. It’s really a combination of it all.
HCCLU: How has your perspective as a transfer student helped you see the differences between community college and university?
ML: The people in community college are sometimes older so they would bring in their point of views that as a 20-year-old, you may not have. Class sizes are bigger at the community colleges and I didn’t get to have the relationships I wanted with the professors.
HCCLU: What’s your major and how did you decide on it?
ML: I am double majoring in Communications, with an emphasis in Journalism, and Political Science. I decided to double major after my first semester here. I chose these majors because I have always been interested in journalism and newspapers. I used to write make believe newspapers when I was in elementary and middle school. With political science I am currently debating if I should just do the major or an emphasis in Law and Public Policy. There’s obviously pros and cons to both of them. Some of the pros would be being familiar with how laws get passed and I know that would be useful to my future. Political Science is just more general and I’ve always liked politics. In the future, I hope to be a journalist or work with campaigns as a staffer or something.HCCLU: What’s the reason behind your interest in politics?
ML: It started when my parents took me to rallies for undocumented immigrants. I would hold signs with my sisters. I would see people rallying for a cause, and after that I got really interested. That eventually led to me wanting to be a Political Science major.
HCCLU: What do you hope to accomplish by the time you graduate from CLU?
ML: By the time I leave I want to know what I want to do as a career. Right now I have a couple of ideas but by that time, I hope I have an idea and plan to get there. I also want to study abroad; I don’t know where but the Oxford trip seems really cool. Another would be the one in Hong Kong because it’s something totally different than what I’m used to. I also want to intern at a newspaper, possibly the Ventura County Star or the Los Angeles Times.
HCCLU: What does being a first generation college student mean to you?
ML: My parents always said that education is key. When they came here from Mexico, they wanted their children to be college educated. I feel like that makes them proud and I’m proud to do it for them.
HCCLU: What’s your dream job?
ML: An editor at a big newspaper, like The New York Times or The Guardian.
HCCLU: Who inspires you the most in life? Why?
ML: My family, they have been there for me and have always pushed me to do the best I can. My parents didn’t get an education, and have always told me that an education is the best possible thing I can get. They have continuously pushed me to be the best person I can be and that has had a huge impact on the reason I am who I am today. Especially my mom, I’m closer to her. My siblings went through stuff and learning about their experiences has helped me. They’re great at giving advice. They give me different perspectives as women which is very different since I don’t have any brothers.
HCCLU: What teacher or professor has had an impact in your life?
ML: A teacher from elementary school, Mr. Morales. He taught us life lessons, and I remember them because they really stuck with me. It’s really important, especially in elementary, he was using morals that stuck with everyone in the class. I even talk to people from that class today and they agree that they were useful and valuable lessons in life.HCCLU: How would you describe yourself in five words?
ML: Ambitious, curious, hard-working, loyal, and idealist.
HCCLU: What song would you say describes your life?
ML: “Black Spiderman” by Logic. In the song he talks about how he doesn’t want to be judged by his appearance or religion, he wants to be taken for the person he is inside, not his appearance.
HCCLU: What’s the most embarrassing thing that has ever happened to you?
ML: This one time in elementary, when I was in fourth grade, for my birthday I was eating cake and ice cream. We were in class and the teacher was talking and I just threw up. It followed me for a couple years, whenever it was my birthday people would tell me, “Remember that time you threw up?”
HCCLU: What’s the most important thing you’ve learned since becoming a college student?
ML: The importance of time management. When you get assignments you wait until the end but you realize that doesn’t work out. This isn’t just important in college, but in life in general. I have learned that hard work is key. You have to work hard and get what you want. It’s a good philosophy. If you just take what you’re given and don’t put in the effort, you’re not going to get to where you want to be.