Repost from Esteban's page

Sunday, October 22, 2006

My Introduction

I am Esteban Juarez, 24, and I am a full time student in the Master of Social Work program at the University of Southern California. I have a Bachelor of Science Degree in Human Services from the California State University of Fullerton (2005). I was born and raised in Orange, California. I am a first generation American of Mexican descent. I am the product of two immigrant parents from Mexico. Currently, I am completing my second year concentration courses and I have declared my concentration specialty as Family and Children. With a master’s degree in social work, I want to establish a professional career treating at risk youth and their families. I am particularly passionate about this population as it relates to my own personal experiences. As a professional social worker, I want to empower at risk teens to make good decisions. In particular, I want to work with minority parents so they can better understand the American culture and appreciate the importance of structure and discipline to guide their children to achieve their goals. It was understood and expected by my parents that we obey and do right; however, structure was not enforced! My parents worked long hours and they were not available or accessible. This factor creates a lack of supervision and structure; therefore, I desire to educate Latino teenagers how to develop and practice self control and self discipline. Because I consider myself culturally sensitive and linguistically able to relate and interact with the Latino community, my goal is to show and teach my community through example. I am one of many ethnic- specific students emerging with a professional degree with the intent to go back to my community to empower my people. I have found my calling: helping others in need! Therefore, I pursue an advanced degree in the helping profession. As a professional social worker, I anticipate a fulfilling career helping others help themselves. While in the social work program, I have set a personal goal for myself. I am going to make the most of every opportunity that is presented to me. As an illustration, I am fortunate to have been elected by my peers to serve as the student representative from Orange County on the school’s student organization/government for academic year 2006-2007. I serve as the student leader for over 120 students on the Orange County campus. Within my professional organization (National Association of Social Workers), as a student member, I have been selected by the National Committee on Leadership to be one part of the Child Welfare Committee for NASW.

posted by Esteban at 7:30 PM 0 comments