City College of New York is home to 16,000 students who come from different walks of life. One of these students is 20-year-old Jaqueline Mata, who I had the pleasure of meeting this past fall during one of our Zoom English classes. Jaqueline resides in Queens with her parents and 3 younger siblings. Mata, the daughter of Mexican immigrants is the first in her family to attend college. “I felt it was necessary not only for me but for my family. My parents didn’t get the opportunity and I can’t have the chance and not take it. I also need to be a good role model for my siblings” said Mata. 

      Jaqueline now a sophomore majoring in Psychology hopes one day to help those who cannot help themselves. Having lived in New York City all her life Mata has seen the ugliest in people. However, she strongly believes there is good in everyone and those exhibiting unpleasant behaviors are actually struggling with some sort of mental illness. “Most if not all of the homeless population here in New York City has one form of mental illness. Whether it be depression or addiction, they are sick and need help in order to get better” says Mata. Being drawn to psychology since a very young age, it appears it was Jaqueline’s destiny all along. Unsure of what exactly she wants to do and focus on after she graduates in 2023, she just knows it will revolve around helping those less fortunate. 

This entry is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International license.