Lucio’s $9K Debt

First-generation fellow millennial?

University of South Florida

Current Debt: $3,000

In terms of student loan debt, I am far more fortunate than many of the stories I read about. Then again, my background is far more out of the ordinary than being from a white middle class family.

I am the second youngest (27) out of my brother and three sisters. My parents were poor, uneducated, non- English speaking, hispanic immigrants who came to America looking for a better life. I was fortunate enough to be born in Texas, instantly granting me American citizenship, along with all the benefits of public education; despite all of it’s flaws. Much of my childhood memories consist of my family and me, working in the fields picking whatever fruit or vegetable was in season.

Never would I have imagined, the extreme contrast between an underprivileged Hispanic family compared to a middle class white family. I learned to work at a young age, learned what it was to be hungry and malnourished. I thought this was normal, I thought every kid went through this. Boy was I misinformed.

Fast forward to my teenage years. Work was a normal thing, helping to run the family business after school and on weekends. Still being hungry and thanking public school for feeding me. In the back of my mind though, I knew I did not want to live in the monotonous routine my parents lived. I wanted to pursue higher education after high school. I set out to do just that.

The thing about having uneducated parents is that they are uneducated. I received no guidance as far academic work was concerned. Labor was all my parents knew and that is something they taught me well. I ended up applying and being accepted to my local community college. This is where some of my fortune came in, being an underprivileged Hispanic, FAFSA more than covered my tuition and book costs, as well as giving me some extra money on the side. Subsequently, I earned an AA in psychology, free of cost. Yay for being a poor minority!

Shortly afterwards, I decided to attend USF (University of South Florida) in Tampa. Again, from very little support from my parents, I filled out the paperwork, was accepted and figured out a way to find an apartment in Tampa, Florida. This time around, FAFSA was enough to cover my tuition and part of my books, but I still had the pesky inconvenience of paying rent and buying new materials for my new stage of life at college. Fortunately, I was working at Starbucks; it was not enough to pay for everything, but it mitigated the amount of loans I would need to request. All in all, I ended up borrowing ~9000 USD for my bachelors degree which I finally received on December of 2012.

It was an amazing feeling, being a first generation college graduate and being Hispanic and underprivileged to top it off! Unfortunately, due to my lack of knowledge and necessity to work full time while finishing my degree, afforded me little to no time for anything else. Such as, making connections, being active in clubs, etc. Basically, anything to help me acquire a decent job or opportunity. Like many other post graduates my age, working at Starbucks full time became my means of income. Making only minimum payments on my student loans, Starbucks was not cutting it. I searched and applied to anything I could possibly be qualified for. No Luck. Then, life happened; I had to move back to my hometown, dreadful sorrow struck.

I transferred Starbucks stores and went back to work for the family business. Strangely enough, I was able to get a position as a substitute teacher in my area. Being an educated, bilingual Hispanic with a degree seem to be out of the ordinary in the very small conservative town I grew up in. This job, coupled with my tax return, afforded me the ability to save and pay off 2/3 of my student debt. Huge burden off my shoulders, I had a large sigh of relief. I now only owe ~3000 USD and am currently struggling through the summer. My loans are deferred, but I have no substitute assignments during the summer and I left my job at Starbucks due to taking full-time worth of assignments. I ended up selling a large portion of my belongings to keep me afloat for the summer months. Although, here I sit, writing a brief story of my college and debt, as I search for something better.

Turns out, I love teaching and working with Hispanic kids who remind me so much of myself when I was their age. Misguided by uneducated parents, not realizing their potential. Hopefully something better come my way. Being a broke educated, Hispanic is not conducive to my desires of wanting to travel and see the world. Perhaps one day, be part of the great generation that discovered the true power of unconditional love!