1. Reinventing MYSELF 1

2.  Before I became the mother of my three beautiful children; two boys (ages 20 & 9) and one girl (age 13-going on 30), I was the fifth child of my parents six children.  I was born and raised in Brooklyn, NY, and I am of Puerto Rican decent. My parents are the last generation of our family to have been born on the island of Puerto Rico, but they shared our rich culture with us each and every day of our lives.  I married at the young age of 20 and moved to Connecticut, where I lived for over 13 years. After my divorce, I moved to Baltimore.  Shortly after moving here, I lost my job and enrolled into CCBC the very next day.  After four years of taking classes part-time (worked full-time), I am proud to announce that I will be receiving my degree in May 2

3.  I believe my strengths come from deep within the values my parents have instilled in me. My mom and dad, along with my children, are my CENTER, and they give me the STRENGTH to tackle anything and everything!  To make my parents and children proud have given me the strength to surpass all obstacles in the past few years. 3

4.  TOO trusting! Ugghh!  I wear my EMOTIONS on my sleeve!  Naïve and gullible at times. 4

5.  My plan is to enroll straight into Stevenson University for my BA in Business Administration right after I receive my Associates Degree in May.  I plan on working towards obtaining a position as a Practice Manager within a Healthcare Organization. 5

6.  I enjoy the Healthcare System, so I plan on working my way up the organizational ladder. First by becoming a Practice Manager, then Director, and who knows, maybe V.P.  My greatest passion has always been to obtain my Nursing Degree. I am one class from applying into the Nursing Program but I was unable to because I am the sole provider for my family and this would have entailed me go to school full- time and work part-time.  My goal would be to combine my BA in Business with my Nursing Degree so that I can be a Clinical Administrator one day. 6

7.  This is where I kick myself over and over when I think of how I had the opportunity straight out of high school to continue my education.  I was accepted into Baruch College in NYC and a Business Administration major. This is pretty ironic because here I am 30 years later trying to accomplish what I started out to do so long ago  This is my greatest regret, so if ever given the opportunity, I would obtain my degree while I was young. 7