Latino author and educator provides tools for success in college and in life

Bertha Barraza’s new book The sense of belonging, as its cover says, is “An ethnographic autobiography of marginalization.” In other words, it is the story of her life as an immigrant from Mexico to the United States. She came to this country when she was a teenager with her family. She knew little at the time other than that she had to work hard for a living, and she worked hard, at various minimum wage jobs until one day she had an awakening. She hadn’t finished high school and no one was going to promote her without a high school diploma.

Bertha now knew what she had to do, but a high school diploma was not what she wanted. She decided to quit her job and go to East Los Angeles College and fill out an application. She had no idea what she was really in for. She only knew that getting a college education was the first step in improving her life.

I won’t go into all the details of Bertha’s trip because she describes them all in the book. However, the important thing is that this book is not just her biography. It is a look at the processes Bertha went through to obtain an education and serves as a guide for today’s students who want to do the same. Bertha details everything a student would need to know to get through college, especially Latino students like her. She talks about everything from using a planner to applying for grants and scholarships.

Bertha also knows that it is almost impossible to succeed on your own. She knows how difficult her journey was, which is why she has written this book, to encourage future generations who may be in the same position as her to have a better life. She also encourages students to look for role models and mentors who can help them. She has a chapter on the power of networks. She also has a chapter in the Puente program that she joined, an organization for Latino students, which allowed her to meet and excel with peers like her. The curriculum of this program also led her to discover Chicano literature, where she found stories of relatable people who encouraged her to succeed and make the world a better place for herself and other struggling students.

A Sense of Belonging is appropriately titled because it also explores how we can find our place in this world. It teaches us to pursue our destinies and not give up until we have achieved our dreams. Over the course of her journey, Bertha went from working at a fast food restaurant without even a high school diploma and she barely spoke English to graduating college, getting a job at a community college, and even earning a Ph.D. Today, Bertha is the embodiment of the American Dream and living proof that anyone can succeed if they put their minds to it and work hard.

For all the wonderful advice in this book about what skills you’ll need in college, how to manage your time, how to take advantage of the various resources colleges offer, and a general guide to a college education, at its heart is a deep sense that inner strength will bring you forward. Bertha is the epitome of having courage in the face of adversity. And despite all of her hard work, she remains humble and grateful for the success she has achieved because she knows none of it would have been possible if others hadn’t lent her a helping hand.

That gratitude shows today in her role as a teacher and student advisor at a California community college, where she helps students navigate their work-school-life balance so they too can be successful. Beyond that, Bertha also loves to travel and experience new cultures. She and she has traveled everywhere from Moscow to Barcelona to Dubai to Zimbabwe. Her journeys have taught her that, at the most basic levels, we are all human and we all want the same things. She embraces deep and rich cultural experiences and brings them back to share with her students so that they, too, can become citizens of the world. She also extends a helping hand to those in need throughout the world. In Zimbabwe, she traveled with a missionary group that adopted a school. In Nigeria, she attended a school grand opening and donated books to students.

Bertha Barraza is one of our anonymous heroes. It would not be going too far for her to call her the Latina Oprah Winfrey for the good she has done for her and for the message of hope and success she has conveyed to countless students. The Sense of Belonging is the perfect book to give to any student who may be struggling in high school or college or just needs a self-esteem boost. I would especially recommend giving it as a high school graduation gift.