Thank you Elena for introducing me and I am honored to be here speaking to all of you tonight. Throughout my time here, I have gotten to hold many titles in SAAT, DAPi, Her Campus and in the DEI Office. Some of you know me as the Her Campus Campus Correspondent, DAPi President, Sexual Assault Advocate or formally as the DEI Ambassador, but my journey here at SAU has not been straightforward and I struggled for a long time thinking about what I should talk about. I mainly couldn’t get past the idea of thinking about what the other speakers have accomplished in their lives and that I didn’t, well, couldn’t compare. I did some searching, looking back on memories and spoke to colleagues as well as friends and from all of those things, I found my answer. Many things came to mind but what really stuck with me was perseverance, being a flame, passion, and building a family.
Who was Veronica?
Some of you know me a bit and some of you probably have no clue who I am. I was born in Florida and grew up in Illinois. I had several challenges growing up but a big one was my disabilities. I never imagined that I would leave that small town and become anything because neither of my parents have a college degree. All of my teachers in school grew up in the area and ended up teaching in the same classrooms they once learned in. In middle school, I was causing a lot of trouble and having to go through a lot of changes so my parents decided a catholic high school was what I needed. My parents couldn’t understand why I didn’t want to be there but rather caused trouble. My teachers couldn’t figure out why I rebelled and wasted my talents. I couldn’t figure out what this school could even offer me besides a false hope of a way out. I made a deal with my parents after a month of all of us being miserable. If I tried to succeed and fit in there, by the end of the year, if I still wanted to leave Nazareth Academy, I could. So I made the basketball and softball team, joined the math club and really got into the symphonic band as well as the marching band. By the end of the year I had reasons to both leave Naz and stay but only 1 reason mattered. I stayed because I learned what Naz could offer me and it wasn’t a way out, it was the opportunity to find out who I actually wanted to be as a person.
Creating My Legacy
Coming to SAU was a big decision for me because I knew that I had to do this journey alone. Being a first generation college student made me work harder and had its own set of challenges. I entered school here my freshman year as a major in Music education with a concentration in both instrumental and vocal music. I was determined to do it alone and didn’t know how to reach out for help. I struggled with time management, making friends, and hiding my disabilities. I grew up being made fun of and called out for being different. I was ashamed and avoided using the resources that were available to me because it was a sign that I wasn’t good enough. This is something that I would fight for a while even though I loosely used the ARC. I would only use the resources that could go unnoticed. Sophomore year Covid hit but one good thing came out of it was my friend dragging me into Her Campus because it allowed me to find a group of amazing people that became like a family. By the end of my junior year I decided to make a change to my major and I jumped from music to Early Childhood Education with an endorsement in Special Education but I couldn’t walk away from music entirely so I made it my minor. What should have been my senior year was the first year of a new major but it was exactly what I needed. I also decided to get more involved with clubs on campus. I joined the sexual assault awareness team and Delta Alpha Pi. Joining both of these clubs helped parts of me heal. SAAT gave me the opportunity to be the voice for those who had been in the same situation that I had been in years before. I was in a relationship with someone who I thought cared about me but it wasn’t true. The situation I was in was just a cycle of abuse and assault. The following year I became a sexual assault advocate to be there to support students on this campus because no one should have to go through it alone or feel like it’s their fault. For DAPi, I got brought in by my friend Rachel because she made me understand that my disability wasn’t something I should be ashamed of or needed to hide. My disability wasn’t a sign of me not being good enough, but rather showed how I persevered even with my additional challenges that my peers didn’t have. Dr. E and I were talking about the panel and I told her how I was struggling with writing my speech and she described that I had this ability to take a flame and breathe oxygen into it to grow into a force. Maddie also gave me the view that I gave Her Campus the kick in the butt it needed to keep growing. In both of these talks, it was mentioned how I could take struggling groups and with using my vision and passion, I could double their size as well as make them known on this campus. My original response to both of these talks was that it took a village and the credit wasn’t mine. Looking back now, I know that I made these groups as successful as they are but the family that I built here made it possible for me to jump in and start over from the ground up to rebuild these clubs, so I am grateful for each one of you out there that have stood by me. I am currently a student teacher and I have completed my first placement in 3rd grade and I have started my Preschool placement.
Taking this into my Teaching Career
I am halfway through my student teaching semester getting ready to step out into the professional world after I graduate in May. Am I terrified to leave? Yes, but I know that I am ready. I am ready to be a teacher and have my own students to help grow into brilliant young minds. I will take every lesson I have learned and prepare my students for the world. Using my knowledge from working in the DEI Office, I can make sure my classroom is welcoming and safe for all of my kiddos no matter their background. Using what I have learned from DAPi, no student with a disability should be afraid to get the resources they need or be denied them if it can help them grow as learners. From SAAT, I know how to help advocate for my students and be a voice for them when they are not heard. As for Her Campus, it gave me the chance to meet people I never would have gotten to know and without them I would be lost. I will forever reflect this in my teaching because my students will always have me in their corner even long after they have moved on past my classroom because everyone deserves to have someone to care about them.
As I finish speaking tonight, I would like you to think about the legacy that you have left behind so far. Who are you? Who are your friends, the people you depend on? Where would you be without them? I may not have huge, standout accomplishments yet, but I had to find my own way which got me to this moment now in front of all of you and I couldn’t have done it without the support system I built and the family I gained. Thank you.