Angie Chavez-Lopez has fought to not be another statistic her whole life and has overcome those challenges by pursuing an education that includes a Bachelor’s degree in Economics and a Master’s Degree in Educational Foundations, Policy & Practice. She has dedicated her work to help uplift others through the power of education and assist those students who traditionally don’t have the resources to attend a 4-year university.

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Tell us about yourself, where are you from, what do you do for work?

I was born in Brighton, CO and went to high school at Weld Central High School. I then attended the University of Colorado-Boulder and graduated in 2017 with a Bachelor’s degree in Economics. Then in 2020 I returned to CU-Boulder and obtained a Master’s Degree in Educational Foundations Policy and Practice. I have worked at CU for 6+ years in different areas. I am currently an Assistant Director for the Precollege Bridge Program bridging first-generation and low income students into a successful college career at CU-Boulder.

Tell us what you do at CU and the kind of students you work with.

I am an Assistant Director for the Precollege Bridge program which is a 4-week summer (bridge) program that allows students to learn about the resources available to them and help the transition into the CU campus. We also provide a scholarship for all 4 years of each student's college career. 

The students in this program are kids who are pipelined from the Precollegiate Development Program and were identified as college-bound students since 7th grade.

My hope in this role now is taking my 6 years of experience working in higher education which include Financial Aid, Education Abroad, and the Bursar's office and be a one stop resource in helping these first generation students succeed in a campus such as CU. 

Did you utilize resources around campus in your time in school that played a role in your success?

Unfortunately I went through many academic advisors and eventually was faced with taking more classes than are typically recommended my senior year to graduate in 4 years. Now as a professional in higher education, my aim is to be an effective resource for students who are not privileged to know any better. 

I was once told that a young lady like myself, at a four-year institution was like climbing Mt. Everest, but without the proper clothing nor a Sherpa at hand to guide me. Other students whose first language was English and had parents that attended college, they were fully prepared to conquer the mountain, but students as myself lack the tools and skills necessary to successfully climb the mountain and come back down. Being a first-generation bilingual Latina, I was able to climb this mountain with the tools and skills provided to me through the resources. 

When you were in high school, what challenges did you face that might have stopped you from pursuing a post-secondary education?

Having been born to teenage parents, statistically speaking I was also supposed to be a teenage parent and likely not pursue any education after high school. Fortunately my parents did their best to ensure I didn’t turn into another statistic at the cost of being sheltered by them, and not being exposed to the real world and dealing with the realities of how my Latina identity is perceived in society. Although my academics were always exceptional, I always felt that I didn’t have exposure to a lot of real life situations that I would eventually need to face and navigate when I got older that I could have figured out sooner. 

What memories do you have of being a first generation college student? What challenged you and what surprised you?

I was used to being a 4.0 GPA student in high school (4.3 to be exact) and quickly discovered in college that a 4.0 GPA is a challenging feat to accomplish. My first semester at CU, I called my mom because I was thinking about withdrawing from a class and as much of a support she normally was to me, she just didn’t know how to best advise me in that situation. That’s when I knew I was completely on my own. To much dismay, I had to withdraw from the class to avoid a blow to my GPA.

This was my first welcome to college moment. 

How did you find your path to your chosen field and your job?

My first job ever was as a student advisor at the Office of Financial Aid. Believe it or not, I almost got fired because I was struggling to quickly grasp the customer service skills needed to communicate with students and families that contacted the office. I think that is one of the moments my parents sheltering me affected me because they didn't want me to work in high school and instead had me focus solely on academics so I had no experience working in a fast-paced environment. On top of that, I also struggled with having an accent when I spoke which made it challenging to ensure that families understood me. Overall though, working at the Office of Financial Aid was the start of my passion of working with spanish-speaking families and advising students who don't necessarily have the privilege to pay for school and need assistance in navigating the ins and outs of college.

This led me into starting my Masters program in Higher Education. My capstone project was  based on research involving the Latinx community and parents' involvement into post-secondary education. Fueled by my experiences at the Office of Financial Aid and as a first-generation Latina, I came to the conclusion that with all my experiences at CU, I can be that resource for students in the same position that I once was in and help push the next generation of students.

After I received my master's degree, I worked as a Program Manager at Education Abroad. The role was rooted in Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion work and focused on helping students who don’t have the exposure or resources to take advantage of studying abroad. I also managed a scholarship program funded by the office that pushed underrepresented students to begin planting the seed in their academic plan to make it possible to study abroad within their 4-5 year college plan. Sending kids around the world for a semester who otherwise might not have gotten the experience to do so was very rewarding and allowed me the opportunity to continue to open doors for non-traditional individuals in their college careers. 

Now, my role as an Assistant Director at the Precollege Program is to provide resources to students who are in the same position I was when I was in school. My hope is that with my guidance these students can take advantage of things like study abroad and are able to ask the right questions when it comes to financial aid. Ultimately I want to be that sherpa that helps them conquer that mountain so they are able to be the next generation of leaders that graduate from CU.

What do you wish students knew when they went to college?

Take advantage of every opportunity that is given to you. Once you are in college, you are given the same resources as everyone else, it's just a matter of how and when you use them. Personally, I could have had the opportunity to study abroad, but I didn't make use of it because I didn't think it was possible financially or academically and couldn't get my family to understand the value of studying abroad…living in another country away from them for several months. If I had studied abroad my perspective on life would have changed and I believe it would have opened a lot more doors academically and professionally for me.

However my calling at my job is to ensure students in the same shoes don't make the same mistakes and are given the resources and tools to make it happen just as the Sherpa mentioned before.

Talk about what it was like being the oldest daughter in a traditional Mexican household to leave for college.

Although I love being the oldest because I get to watch my siblings grow into beautiful human beings, it also comes with obstacles. Growing up I had overprotective parents. My siblings have the fortune to not have that version of my parents. By this I mean my parents’ parenting style has evolved over time and their methods have changed with my siblings from what it was with me. I am happy to have experienced the stricter version of them so my siblings are able to experience things I wasn't allowed to do, as the older sister, my hope is always that my siblings will do better than me! 

But it did bring lots of challenges and expectations from them that at times made it difficult to navigate a balance between my life in college and my life at home. There was still a certain responsibility I felt and realistically had to be there for my parents when they needed me because they didn't understand what being a college student was and what it required from me. As the oldest daughter, you always have the most expectations, whether it is in your career or personal life,  but I am proud to say I exceeded those expectations and have grown from them to be the person I am now.

What advice would you give your younger self?

As a first generation, and the oldest daughter in the family, I felt like I always needed to impress my family, especially my dad, and I was afraid of being a disappointment. Realizing that you are on the journey by yourself and are creating your own path, it doesn’t matter what everyone else feels or how they view you, it's a matter of how much work you put behind it and where you want to take it.

I like to say that my Bachelor’s degree was for my parents. But my Master’s Degree…. was for ME. 

What has helped you overcome obstacles in your life?

Learning to not care what others think of you and your decisions. Like I said before, I was always worried about what my family thought of me. No one truly will understand your challenges more than yourself. You can try to explain to your family ,in my case a very traditional Mexican family, as to why I am continuing my education( for my Master’s program) but they will never understand the true meaning it means to me to carry that MA at the end of my name. I hold it with pride. That Master's degree was for ME!

Who is your biggest influence and why?

My mom was a teenage mother who had to take care of her siblings and her child at 18 years old after the death of her mom due to breast cancer. These obstacles never stopped my mom from dreaming. She is a woman of many talents and aspirations. Every year this woman has a new milestone for herself whether that is professionally or personally. You would think she had a degree herself by the way she carries herself and the knowledge she possesses. STRONG, BRAVE, and Inspirational is what I aspire to be. 

If someone were to tell the legend of Angie Chavez, what do you hope they would say?

She MADE IT! With all the odds being against her, having teenage parents who then were overprotective parents and having the burden of being the oldest child and daughter in her family, she made her dreams come true to follow her passion in education and created the path for her younger siblings to follow.