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>> Cal State San Bernardino is always going to be a place that, you know, helped me just jump off this trajectory that I didn't even know I was able to do. My experience here has contributed to me personally in a way that I can't even describe to you. My first job that I ever got was at the Santos Manuel Student Union as a student assistant as a maintenance technician. It's probably one of the jobs that has impacted me the most in my career. Because through that role, I was able to understand the value of work. And I think through my four years here at Cal State San Bernardino, I was able to progressively get involved and learn more. And also, not only develop as a person but as a leader. Cal State San Bernardino has a lot of great people. And when I say that, I talk about, you know, faculty, staff, students, business partners, community partners like San Manuel. This campus is really made up by a lot of good people and a lot of people come here with a lot of hopes and dreams. I quickly realized that I also had a unique story. When I came to Cal State San Bernardino, it wasn't just me as a student. It was also my parents. It was anyone that ever had any positive influence on me and it's a journey that I started but I didn't finish on my own. Thanks to my parents, to my family, to my cultural values, I've been able to navigate this new world that wasn't set up for me. You know, I think for me as a Latino, you know, we have opportunities and we have access to them, but sometimes we don't really have access to them. And I was coming from a community where there was limited opportunity. And at Cal State San Bernardino, I think I gained two things. Number one is confidence, and then secondly, it felt like they removed a blindfold from me and I was able to see a whole different world and that's what has helped me till today. Now I'm big on bringing people together. The community, that's all they want. I see myself as how can I continue to be that effective intermediate and marry people that are meant to be working with one another for the one common purpose is human kindness and to help others. Ever since I was a young kid, you know, my family, my values, you know, growing up in a traditional Latino home, you got to act with integrity. You got to be a person of your word. Because that's what's really going to follow you for the rest of your life and the relationships that you're able to garner or steward over time. And I think the one thing that I'm always going to be proud of is my story because this is my story. Don't forget where you came from because that's the story that's never going to change. That's the story that's going to follow you for the rest of your life.

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