Life's challenges helped ECC student evolve

The first year of college is challenging for many freshmen: unfamiliar classmates and teachers, new surroundings and lots of coursework.

But few have had to overcome the challenges María de los Ángeles Borrero Véaz faced when she arrived at Elgin Community College in the spring of 2009.

She will share her experiences when she delivers the commencement speech during the 2011 fall graduation ceremony. Commencement is 7 p.m. Friday in the Spartan Arts Center.

Borrero Véaz, a native of Puerto Rico, has surmounted language barriers, cuisine challenges and weather woes to complete her associate degree in arts. She wants to be a social worker for elementary school students.

“My family was not challenged in Puerto Rico,” Borrero Véaz said. “But here, everything was new. The food was hard to get accustomed to and the weather was new.”

Her family moved to Elgin in 2008 when her mother was recruited to teach in Elgin Area School District U-46. Her brother was also about to start college at Loyola University in Chicago.

The 21-year-old says she adapted, thanks to the support from students and faculty at the college who encouraged her to join clubs, practice her English and participate in on-campus events.

“It was a challenge because in Puerto Rico we practiced reading and writing but we didn't practice speaking English,” Borrero Véaz said. “It was killing me inside to be shy for my first few months. But I decided if I really wanted to learn the language I had to truly commit and put all of my efforts into it.”

Borrero Véaz, said she stopped hanging out with her Puerto Rican friends and encouraged professors and classmates to correct her pronunciation and grammar.

“There was always that respect between students and professors,” she said. “They don't want to change you; they want to make you better.”

She joined the United States of All Cultures club, which connected her with international students on campus. That interaction led to a role as a Spartan Leader, part of the college's orientation program.

Luchana Imbrogno, coordinator of first-year programs and supervisor of orientation leaders, said Borrero Véaz always had a dynamic personality that was bursting to come out.

“When I first met her she was concerned about her communication skills,” Imbrogno said. “She was very shy about talking to new students. But now she is not timid and loves to sit down with students to learn about their cultures. She became one of our strongest leaders.”

Borrero Véaz will continue her studies through and ECC partnership with Columbia College of Missouri. She is working toward a bachelor's degree in human services.