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How one university empowers and inspires Latin American students · Beyond The Beacon

0:07
SPEAKER_04: Welcome to Beyond the Beacon with Bishop Kevin Sweeney, a podcast with the Diocese of Patterson, New Jersey.
0:13
SPEAKER_04: Join us for weekly conversations about our Catholic faith, and together, let's strive to live a life of faith, hope, and love.
0:20
SPEAKER_04: I'm Jay Agnish.
0:21
SPEAKER_04: With me is Bishop Kevin Sweeney.
0:23
SPEAKER_04: Bishop Kevin, how are you today?
0:25
SPEAKER_03: I'm okay, Jay.
0:25
SPEAKER_03: How are you doing?
0:26
SPEAKER_03: Doing well.
0:27
SPEAKER_03: Happy to be here in our new studio.
0:29
SPEAKER_03: Well, great job.
0:30
SPEAKER_03: Uh well done.
0:31
SPEAKER_03: I know you've been working on it for a while with a lot of other folks that we've got.
0:34
SPEAKER_04: Yeah, made it happen.
0:35
SPEAKER_04: Yeah.
0:35
SPEAKER_04: It's uh like a little green.
0:37
SPEAKER_04: I'm happy to see that.
0:38
SPEAKER_04: Uh trying to keep with our uh diocesan colors here.
0:42
SPEAKER_04: Need a little more soundproofing, I think, to get it up to snuff, but I think it's a great start.
0:46
SPEAKER_04: And it was uh yeah, credit to a lot of people, St.
0:48
SPEAKER_04: Phillips and the pastor there, Father Montaleon and Cecile, for making the connection.
0:53
SPEAKER_04: And uh yeah, it's good to be here.
0:54
SPEAKER_04: Great.
0:55
SPEAKER_04: Um so what's what's going on?
0:58
SPEAKER_04: Uh just I could just lay it out for you.
1:00
SPEAKER_04: Yankees synod election.
1:03
SPEAKER_04: What do you want to talk about?
1:05
SPEAKER_04: I'm sorry about your team.
1:06
SPEAKER_03: I mean we're Why Well, it's not over yet.
1:08
SPEAKER_03: It's uh they're down 3-0, but uh the Yankees have made history before, so uh be the first team to come back and win four in a row.
1:16
SPEAKER_03: Uh we're never say die.
1:19
SPEAKER_03: So yeah, I'll roo hard for you, Bishop.
1:22
SPEAKER_03: So um uh very excited to hear the uh culmination of the synod.
1:30
SPEAKER_03: Uh priest friend recommended, which I recommended to our own priest, then um sending them an email today, Pope Francis' homily uh this past Sunday on the gospel, which we all uh read and reflected on the of the blind Bartimaeus.
1:45
SPEAKER_03: And Pope Francis gives a beautiful homily reflecting on that experience of the encounter between Bartimaeus and the Lord and uh him following up the road, uh taking off his cloak and getting up and going to Jesus when he called, and uh how that uh images well uh what he's asking of us as a synodal church, uh walking that journey together.
2:04
SPEAKER_04: So And this was at the closing mass of Sunday.
2:07
SPEAKER_03: At the closing mass on this past Sunday, yes.
2:09
SPEAKER_03: So and then our friends at Jesuitical uh had a great interview with uh Cardinal Tobin, who came to the gave them time right after the closing mass.
2:17
SPEAKER_03: So uh uh and Cardinal Tobin's a good connection to our guest today, right?
2:21
SPEAKER_03: Because uh he's uh the chair of the board of uh of Seton Hall University as the Archbishop of of Newark.
2:27
SPEAKER_03: So uh God bless him.
2:28
SPEAKER_03: Uh I don't know how he does all that he does, but uh he finds a way to do it.
2:31
SPEAKER_03: So uh so exciting times and uh thank you as we're recording uh the weekend after our in-pew weekend for the uh ministers appeal.
2:40
SPEAKER_03: Thanks to our pastors and all those who have made pledges to the appeal that help us to do the good work that we strive to do.
2:46
SPEAKER_03: Um and so um and then we certainly pray for our country in these days as early voting has begun here in New Jersey, and uh and we pray for the country as we um uh uh anticipate uh the election day um next Tuesday.
3:01
SPEAKER_03: So um we pray um that the Lord will guide us.
3:06
SPEAKER_03: But get out and vote.
3:07
SPEAKER_03: We have to we have that responsibility.
3:08
SPEAKER_04: Thanks, Bishop.
3:09
SPEAKER_04: So and we'll get, I think, more into the synod in a future episode, hopefully.
3:14
SPEAKER_04: Um lots to talk about, lots going on.
3:16
SPEAKER_04: So why don't we open up with prayer and then we move into our interview?
3:19
SPEAKER_03: We'll place ourselves in God's presence in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.
3:23
SPEAKER_03: Amen.
3:24
SPEAKER_03: As we come to the end of this month of October, Respect Life Month, and also uh part of Hispanic Heritage Month and um also the month of the Holy Rosary.
3:36
SPEAKER_03: We continually ask the help and intercession of Mary, our blessed mother, as we pray.
3:40
SPEAKER_03: Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee.
3:44
SPEAKER_03: Blessed art thou amongst women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus.
3:48
SPEAKER_03: Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death.
3:53
SPEAKER_03: Amen.
3:54
SPEAKER_03: We ask the help of Mary, our blessed mother, our Lady, Queen of Peace, pray for us.
3:59
SPEAKER_03: In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.
4:02
SPEAKER_04: Amen.
4:02
SPEAKER_04: Amen.
4:03
SPEAKER_04: So, Bishop, you you mentioned uh the the Seton Hall board.
4:06
SPEAKER_04: You're on that board with Cardinal Tobinetsky.
4:08
SPEAKER_03: Exofficio.
4:09
SPEAKER_03: Uh the five we have five dioceses in the state of New Jersey, uh, and each of the bishops uh are on the board of regents uh of Seton Hall University by uh as ex official as as as bishops of the diocese.
4:22
SPEAKER_03: And what's that like?
4:23
SPEAKER_03: Are you you It's been actually a great experience.
4:25
SPEAKER_03: Uh the the wonderful things are being done at Seton Hall.
4:28
SPEAKER_03: We'll hear some of that today.
4:30
SPEAKER_03: Uh and um and and being part of those meetings uh, you know, to uh run a university, the challenges that uh um such as our Catholic schools here in the diocese, elementary and high schools, the financial challenges are real, but education is so important and Catholic education is so important that really we can go uh back to Mother Seaton, uh uh after whom the uh university is named, and the tradition of um uh the church offering education uh at all levels uh here in this country, and as a country of immigrants, as we'll hear today, um that uh that opportunity, the American dream, so much of it is realized because um young people get a chance to uh have uh uh education at the university level and go on to be leaders in our communities and and and in the church and and in in society.
5:18
SPEAKER_03: So um uh I'm really glad that we have our guests with us today to hear about some of the great things that are happening at at Seton Hall.
5:25
SPEAKER_04: So why don't we introduce our guests?
5:26
SPEAKER_04: So Lori Tark is the executive director of the Joseph A uh how do you say Onanaway Latino Institute at Seton Hall University.
5:37
SPEAKER_04: She's a first generation American whose parents immigrated to Cu uh immigrated from Cuba.
5:42
SPEAKER_04: She's on a mission to renew and re-amplify the Institute which she has led since February.
5:48
SPEAKER_04: Christian Mastika is uh a scholar recipient of the Institute, and along with um Daniela uh Miranda Galle, who will join us shortly.
6:02
SPEAKER_04: Um so both of those both of them are scholar recipients, so we're gonna learn a little bit about the institute and and what what you're doing there, the important work you're doing there.
6:11
SPEAKER_04: So hot hello and welcome.
6:13
SPEAKER_00: Hi, thank you so much for having us here.
6:15
SPEAKER_00: We're so pleased to be able to represent the Joseph A Unanue Latino Institute.
6:21
SPEAKER_00: Um you know we we are uh in a couple of years of celebration.
6:26
SPEAKER_00: Uh this institute uh was founded in 1974 as the Puerto Rican Institute.
6:32
SPEAKER_00: Uh in fact, uh on October 17th, 1974 was when Father Fehey came and inaugurated uh the Puerto Rican Institute.
6:40
SPEAKER_00: So just last week, uh oh a little over a week and a half ago, we celebrated 50 years uh of Latino excellence on Seton Hall's campus.
6:49
SPEAKER_00: In 2005, uh Joseph A.
6:51
SPEAKER_00: and Carmenana Unanue um, you know, they they made this generous gift and the name then transferred as the Joseph A.
7:00
SPEAKER_00: Uh Unanue Latino Institute.
7:03
SPEAKER_00: And so in 2025, we will be celebrating the 20th anniversary of that.
7:07
SPEAKER_00: So two years of of celebration.
7:09
SPEAKER_00: And um since then we've done some pretty remarkable things.
7:13
SPEAKER_03: And uh a little of your personal history that you certainly bring, I'm sure, to the leadership of the institute um you were mentioning about growing up on a block in Summit, New Jersey, right?
7:24
SPEAKER_03: Yeah.
7:25
SPEAKER_03: Um I grew up in in Whitestone, Queens, in a Italian and Irish parish.
7:29
SPEAKER_03: Um uh uh all over the Northeast.
7:33
SPEAKER_03: Uh there's been uh immigrant communities that have come and kind of found their way together.
7:37
SPEAKER_03: Uh uh so you talked a little bit about that experience of growing up on your block with Cuban parents and many uh uh extended family in the houses on the block?
7:46
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, so so my parents um they came here I think September 18th, 1965, 67, like right around that time.
7:55
SPEAKER_00: I can't remember the exact year.
7:57
SPEAKER_00: My aunt was already here um and she she was the matriarch, uh Gladys, and she brought she she brought over each person individually from Cuba.
8:07
SPEAKER_00: Uh they had to jump through hoops, um, as you can imagine, being a communist government who didn't want them to leave.
8:13
SPEAKER_00: Uh and uh they found that if they were to go to Spain first, they they would be able to come over here eventually.
8:22
SPEAKER_00: So um my parents went through this harrowing experience uh which could be a podcast within itself.
8:28
SPEAKER_00: And um they they were shaking as they got on the plane because they they didn't know if they were gonna be able to to leave at that point with my eight-year-old brother at the time.
8:39
SPEAKER_00: And um they got on the plane and the the pilot from Iberia Airlines said, uh, you're free now.
8:45
SPEAKER_00: Um you know, welcome to welcome to Spain.
8:48
SPEAKER_00: They stayed there for about a year and then they immigrated over to to uh uh to the United States um and you know they moved next door to my aunt and then my other aunt moved next door to my aunt and and there the story goes.
9:01
SPEAKER_00: And I didn't know that I was living in the U.S.
9:02
SPEAKER_03: You grew up speaking Spanish before kindergarten as a.
9:05
SPEAKER_00: I was not uh I did not speak English until I went to Jefferson School in Summit, and that's when I realized that I was living in America and not Cuba.
9:14
SPEAKER_00: Um, you know, again.
9:17
SPEAKER_00: Well yeah, my house, you know, I didn't know anything about the honeymooners or I Love Lucy or anything like that, who I knew was uh Raúl Velasco, siempre en Domingo, and like like you know, Iris Chacong and these like names that uh you know nobody around me knew.
9:32
SPEAKER_00: And I was the only, I think one of the only Hispanic kids in the entire school at that point.
9:36
SPEAKER_03: And and now you have the opportunity to meet um students like uh Christian and Daniela and others and help them to uh share their um uh cultural and language and historical background uh uh at uh at a very on a very diverse uh campus, right?
9:53
SPEAKER_03: At Seton Hall.
9:54
SPEAKER_00: Yes.
9:54
SPEAKER_00: Uh uh Seton Hall, um, you know, one of the one of the upcoming celebrations that we are going to have in 2025 is us becoming a Hispanic serving institution.
10:05
SPEAKER_00: For the last two years, uh what qualifies uh a university as Hispanic serving is that I think the the number is either 25 or 26 percent of the undergraduate population has to identify as Latino Hispanic, right?
10:17
SPEAKER_00: And so um two years ago we hit 26 percent, this year we hit 28 percent.
10:22
SPEAKER_00: So we are um more than likely going to get that designation and uh that's a huge celebration to be able to, you know, bring my personal experiences, bring the pitfalls that I experienced, bring the knowledge that it that only somebody who has been raised here really knows, and be able to accelerate their careers and their lives through the connections that I've developed over my life, but also just like simple things like you know, this is the personal loan forgiveness program.
10:51
SPEAKER_00: Well, what's that?
10:52
SPEAKER_00: Nobody told us about that.
10:53
SPEAKER_00: Well, uh that's because you kind of have to live here.
10:56
SPEAKER_03: And the immigrant experience, um especially as first generation, um if if your parents didn't go to college, you have to figure it out on your own.
11:03
SPEAKER_03: Was that the case with you, Christian, right?
11:05
SPEAKER_03: Yes.
11:06
SPEAKER_03: Um maybe tell us a little bit about your experience of um choosing Seton Hall and then arriving on the campus and and what it's been like.
11:13
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, definitely coming from like I am the oldest, I have a younger sister, and my college experience was the first for my family.
11:20
SPEAKER_02: Neither of my parents went to college, and they didn't really understand the process.
11:23
SPEAKER_02: So it was kind of just both of us learning at the same time, especially in preparation for my sister when she goes to college, which she's in now.
11:31
SPEAKER_02: So kind of that starting up, and we did all like the college tours and everything like that.
11:35
SPEAKER_02: And for my parents, it was like the first time doing that, and going to so many different places, meeting the different deans and uh professors from the different colleges, and then choosing C and Hall.
11:45
SPEAKER_02: I really felt welcomed in their programs and their community, and it was kind of learning on my own what kind of resources are available to me.
11:53
SPEAKER_02: I didn't necessarily know things that I didn't necessarily didn't know things about being first gen until I was with people who were talking about, oh yeah, our parents went to college, this was so easy for us.
12:03
SPEAKER_02: Our older sibling did this and that.
12:05
SPEAKER_02: Right, right, right.
12:06
SPEAKER_02: And I was like, oh, okay, like this was things I had to figure out on my own with the help of my my parents as we're learning together.
12:12
SPEAKER_03: And in your second year, did you hear about the Unanue uh Institute?
12:17
SPEAKER_03: Uh maybe tell us a little bit about that.
12:19
SPEAKER_02: Yes, we were just coming out of COVID, so it was the first time the full campus was like fully available and all the and all the programs were available.
12:26
SPEAKER_02: And I met different um some of my peers were actually working at the institute, and through them I was able to spend time with them and kind of learn about all of their different experiences and different programs that they had.
12:38
SPEAKER_02: A big one for me is always their Fed trip where they go to the Federal Reserve in New York, the Federal Reserve Bank.
12:44
SPEAKER_02: And this is a really long day trip where we meet different economists there, different people who work there, different directors.
12:50
SPEAKER_02: And for me who's someone who wants to go into economics or economic policy, this is really interesting.
12:55
SPEAKER_02: This is a really cool experience.
12:56
SPEAKER_02: And you said you're a double major in the I'm a double major in diplomacy and economics.
13:00
SPEAKER_03: That's great.
13:01
SPEAKER_03: That's great.
13:01
SPEAKER_03: Uh Lori, Lori, right?
13:03
SPEAKER_03: Uh how many uh students would be part of the institute?
13:47
SPEAKER_00: Well, we represent the 28%.
13:50
SPEAKER_00: You know, and and so we represent the 28% across all three campuses.
13:55
SPEAKER_00: So one of the first things that we're trying to do um since since I became the executive director is to really create bridges with our Newark Law Campus and create bridges with our Nutley um interprofessional health campus.
14:12
SPEAKER_00: And uh we're we we are doing that, so we uh represent the students there too.
14:18
SPEAKER_00: So you you know, if you take the total population of of uh Seton Hall underground, well I I want to say it's like uh almost like 10,000, something around that, you know, that's a significant amount.
14:29
SPEAKER_00: Uh now the students that really engage with us on a daily basis are the scholars.
14:34
SPEAKER_00: Uh we uh gave the largest uh scholarship co the we had the largest scholarship cohort this year uh with over close to 60 students.
14:46
SPEAKER_00: Uh you know, the scholarships they they range in what people get.
14:50
SPEAKER_00: It depends on how much they owe.
14:52
SPEAKER_00: And you know, and we we have a rubric now that we use to to um you know give equity and and to to people.
15:00
SPEAKER_00: And so um yeah, I I mean it's it's quite a bit of maybe 50 to 75 that engage with us, you know, throughout the year actively.
15:11
SPEAKER_03: But the university being able to give a helping hand, right?
15:13
SPEAKER_00: Oh yeah, the university, the university through our programming, through uh you know, the the these students come to us with a variety of needs, all right?
15:23
SPEAKER_03: Like not only economic, right?
15:25
SPEAKER_00: Right, like emotional support, professional support, academic support.
15:29
SPEAKER_00: You know, I'm failing my class, what do I do?
15:31
SPEAKER_00: I have uh, you know, we have boxes of tissues.
15:33
SPEAKER_00: Our assistant director, you know, she she actively you know brings the you know, they they come to her office, she starts crying, they start crying, she's got the tissues there ready.
15:41
SPEAKER_00: It was part of our Amazon order.
15:42
SPEAKER_00: Um you know, we we have uh we we have um you know even even issues with their family because again, we're a collectivist culture.
15:52
SPEAKER_00: So so it kind of goes hand in hand that we're not just dealing with the students, sometimes we're dealing with the families and and what they might be going through.
16:00
SPEAKER_03: And as a Catholic university, um the experience of community, right?
16:03
SPEAKER_03: Uh uh bringing people together, um, would you say you found some community uh life and support in within the uh institute?
16:10
SPEAKER_03: Absolutely.
16:11
SPEAKER_03: At the university, large university.
16:12
SPEAKER_02: I I found probably the most support at the institute because it is through like these conversations I was able to find people who were similar to me and different like similar backgrounds and similar stories, and then I was able to kind of share it with other people.
16:25
SPEAKER_02: So I've done like open houses for the institute, and even like part of our big celebration gala, I was bringing a freshman who didn't know about the institute to the gala with me.
16:34
SPEAKER_03: So you've received a helping hand, but you've given a helping hand as well.
16:37
SPEAKER_04: Yeah, I wanted to ask, so how do you make the initial connections with the students?
16:40
SPEAKER_04: How do you tell them about the institute?
16:42
SPEAKER_00: A lot uh I mean, it's through a variety of streams, you know.
16:45
SPEAKER_00: We we have so so one distinction also to make here is that this is not an institute just for Latinos.
16:52
SPEAKER_00: You know, I mean like a lot of people, you know, because they hear Latino Institute, they instantly think, well, I'm Italian, I'm not gonna, you know, this is doesn't apply to me.
17:00
SPEAKER_00: Anybody can apply for these scholarships.
17:03
SPEAKER_00: That's the thing.
17:04
SPEAKER_00: It's like again, if you have an appreciation of Latin American culture, if you've got an appreciation of our of of you know Latino history, you can also write the application and and be in the running for the scholarship.
17:17
SPEAKER_00: And I'm happy to say that we have a diversity of people who are scholarship recipients who are not Latino or Hispanic, but are allies to the community.
17:27
SPEAKER_00: And so so that's a major distinction because I I I you know again when we're talking about equity, it's there.
17:33
SPEAKER_00: You know?
17:34
SPEAKER_00: When we're talking about when we're talking about inclusiveness, it is there.
17:38
SPEAKER_03: You know, and so so um and and talking about is one thing, but uh inviting someone in and having them experience that's another, right?
17:45
SPEAKER_00: Uh yeah, yeah, and that's and that because it's valuable, you know, it's val it's I think it's equally just as valuable of having somebody from a different community come in and and be immersed in this, you know, and and then they could be better healthcare providers because they understand their patients better.
18:00
SPEAKER_00: They could be better lawyers because they understand their clients better.
18:03
SPEAKER_00: They could be you know, uh again, it's that was my experience in the uh church in Brooklyn and Queens.
18:09
SPEAKER_03: Um not being able to speak a word of Spanish then in the seminary, getting to know the comunidad um and and they receive me and uh, you know, the appreciation for the experience of the um Hispanic and Latin American, uh Latino, um uh the gift that the immigrant community is um to our church, um, to our country.
18:30
SPEAKER_03: And uh um uh uh as you said, your your um dad is from Dominican Republic?
18:36
SPEAKER_02: No, my mom's from the Dominican Republic and my dad's from Puerto Rico.
18:39
SPEAKER_03: And um I uh the one thing I had in common with Dominican and those from Dominican Republic in in Puerto Rico before speaking aware of Spanish was baseball.
18:48
SPEAKER_03: Uh but uh when I went to study Spanish in the Dominican Republic, it was great to be able to uh watch some games.
18:53
SPEAKER_03: But uh but that experience of culture is it's just uh such a wonderful um gift when when when we're open to it, right?
18:59
SPEAKER_03: And sometimes somebody just needs an opportunity to get to know someone different.
19:04
SPEAKER_04: So did you get to meet Victor Cruz or what?
19:06
SPEAKER_04: Was that last week?
19:07
SPEAKER_02: But no.
19:08
SPEAKER_02: Um I was able to see him speak and everything like that.
19:11
SPEAKER_02: I kind of use that opportunity to kind of be with some of our other like advisory board members of the council and kind of just use that time to introduce the person I brought with me to the institution.
19:20
SPEAKER_03: And that was the big event for um Hispanic Heritage one, right?
19:24
SPEAKER_03: After Victor Cruz.
19:25
SPEAKER_00: Right.
19:25
SPEAKER_00: So we have one major fundraiser a year.
19:27
SPEAKER_00: We're hoping to make it too.
19:29
SPEAKER_00: Um but but uh we have an annual gala.
19:32
SPEAKER_00: Uh this was the first time since 2022 that we have the gala again.
19:36
SPEAKER_00: And uh, you know, we bring people here who are uh who have made notable contributions to the community, uh either through their life or or you know uh through a not-for-profit, something like something like that.
19:50
SPEAKER_00: Giving back service.
19:51
SPEAKER_00: Right, and service servant leadership, really, is what it comes down to.
19:55
SPEAKER_00: And you know, this the these awards, we have four of them now.
19:58
SPEAKER_00: Uh the Esperanza Award for people who give hope to the community, and you know, that's the biggest one.
20:04
SPEAKER_00: We have the Viva Award, um, again, somebody who does a lot of philanthrop uh with philanthropy.
20:09
SPEAKER_00: Uh we have the Magno Award, which is somebody who who gives contributions to people from um you know all aspects of business to, you know, and serves the community as well.
20:19
SPEAKER_00: And then the Alumni Impact Award.
20:21
SPEAKER_00: So we had you know community leaders like Deb Viscone, who's the president and CEO of Newbridge Medical Center.
20:28
SPEAKER_00: We have Sarah Pena, who is the founder of Boys to Leaders Foundation in Newark.
20:33
SPEAKER_00: She's also the director of external affairs, uh Adrian Orosco, uh who represents uh uh you know a union, and then uh we also had the former NFL champion and and salsa dancing uh right, yes, you know the salsa dancing uh football player and he an analyst and also now he's into fashion too and all sorts of other things.
20:58
SPEAKER_00: But but he came and all of them spoke to and and they're all rallying behind our students.
21:03
SPEAKER_00: That that that's really what that gala is about.
21:05
SPEAKER_00: It's about a celebration of our community, a celebration of the people who are servant leaders in our community, and a celebration of what the the magic that we do at Seaton Hall for the community.
21:14
SPEAKER_03: And Christian is hoping to um take that next step after graduation, right?
21:18
SPEAKER_03: Where did you say if you hope to be working economics?
21:21
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, hopefully to be in economics and kind of bring as many people I can with me.
21:25
SPEAKER_02: I know a lot of different companies and organizations have employee resource groups that I want to join or like different Hispanic heritage, like culture communities within the workplace, so that I could kind of bring back people come with me, and then also I could bring people back down to Scene Hall.
21:40
SPEAKER_02: Great, great.
21:41
SPEAKER_00: And this is really important because again, we are so underrepresented in so many careers, you know, especially science, especially law, especially um you know, even even in uh things you know like the arts, we we are underrepresented, and I'm talking by a massive amount.
22:00
SPEAKER_00: And so the more um the more that our the that the Hispanic and Latino community is introduced to these careers and the more exposure they have and the more visibility and representation.
22:11
SPEAKER_03: I think we can see it's going in a better direction, right?
22:13
SPEAKER_03: And certainly the institute is helping.
22:15
SPEAKER_03: Well, Christian, thanks.
22:15
SPEAKER_03: I want to know we want to bring in Daniela, but um thank you very much for your time and for coming down.
22:20
SPEAKER_03: Thank you, Randall.
22:21
SPEAKER_04: Be in my prayers.
22:22
SPEAKER_04: Thank you.
22:23
SPEAKER_04: Thank you.
22:31
SPEAKER_04: Okay, we so we're back and we're gonna welcome Danielle Miranda Calle, who's a pre-law student and also a scholar recipient.
22:39
SPEAKER_04: Uh Like Christian, uh welcome.
22:41
SPEAKER_04: Thanks for joining us.
22:43
SPEAKER_01: Thank you for having us.
22:44
SPEAKER_04: So uh how did you first hear about the institute and and what how's it what's that been like for you being involved with the I originally I wasn't a scholar at first.
22:54
SPEAKER_01: Um so I am an EOP student and I'm a first generation student.
22:58
SPEAKER_01: And so I ended up working at the Latino Institute as a federal work studies student.
23:03
SPEAKER_01: And I ended up finding them through an involvement fair as they're always blasting music on the green, which is a it's a huge part of campus where everybody ends up convening, and we have like these open houses or we have these clubs and organizations on these tables, and I ended up seeing that they were looking for someone to hire.
23:17
SPEAKER_01: And so I was looking for a job, so it was just matchmade in heaven.
23:21
SPEAKER_01: I was like, okay.
23:22
SPEAKER_01: Um I ended up connecting with some of the students there to ended up being my dear friends until this day.
23:27
SPEAKER_01: And so I ended up working there, and I was there for the first gala in 2022, actually.
23:32
SPEAKER_01: I loved it, and so I ended up working there until two years, so until my sophomore year, I ended up leaving there to pursue another position at the prosecutor's office.
23:41
SPEAKER_01: And so with that being said, during my second year, I ended up applying for the scholarship position.
23:46
SPEAKER_03: That's great.
23:47
SPEAKER_03: And studying law?
23:49
SPEAKER_01: Yes, so I'm a criminal justice major and double minoring in both psychology and sociology with hopes of pursuing law after undergraduate.
23:56
SPEAKER_03: Sorry, and did you say also first generation?
23:58
SPEAKER_01: First generation.
23:59
SPEAKER_03: Both parents from Ecuador.
24:01
SPEAKER_03: Yes.
24:01
SPEAKER_03: Um maybe just share a little bit about uh um as you were growing up uh what it meant to be Ecuadorian American and uh and then maybe coming to Seton Hall and uh how what was the experience of of the community, the diversity, and and how you could share um uh what you received from your parents and the Ecuadorian uh culture uh in in in your relationships and your your work and in the campus community.
24:26
SPEAKER_01: All right, with that being said, with my Ecuadorian background, I hold it very dear to my heart.
24:31
SPEAKER_01: As Lori said before, I grew up uh our culture is very collectivist.
24:35
SPEAKER_01: So most of my family, we all lived intergenerationally in one house in Newark.
24:39
SPEAKER_01: And so a lot of my cousins, my grandmothers, other grandmothers, we were all living in one household.
24:44
SPEAKER_03: And so Todo en Español, right?
24:46
SPEAKER_03: Todo en Español, yes.
24:47
SPEAKER_01: That's how I ended up picking up with that being said, Spanish is my first language.
24:50
SPEAKER_01: And so I didn't get to learn English until I was in kindergarten, first grade in Newark, and even with that, the teachers were speaking Spanish.
24:56
SPEAKER_01: So we were all speaking Spanish.
24:58
SPEAKER_01: There wasn't really that much English learning going on until I would say my second, third grade.
25:02
SPEAKER_01: And with that said, sorry, we're gonna go right ahead, no problem.
25:07
SPEAKER_01: Um I end up just really bringing in my Ecuadorian culture.
25:10
SPEAKER_01: I'm very proud of it.
25:11
SPEAKER_01: I end up serving a lot with volunteer work with the Ecuadorian Chamber of Commerce, which some of my family members are a part of.
25:17
SPEAKER_01: And even with that being said, even throughout my childhood, I really liked going back to my country.
25:22
SPEAKER_01: Thankfully, I was able to go back after my parents weren't able to go back, I think it was for like 20 years.
25:27
SPEAKER_01: Wow.
25:28
SPEAKER_01: And we were able to go back for the first time in 2016.
25:31
SPEAKER_01: Wow.
25:31
SPEAKER_01: And it was an amazing experience.
25:33
SPEAKER_01: I was able to meet some of my family members.
25:35
SPEAKER_01: I haven't been able to see, and I've only seen them through the phone.
25:37
SPEAKER_01: And so seeing that and seeing them and seeing the support that I have from back home and pushing them, pushing me and my sister to pursue my studies and to continuously say, hey, no, like you need to go to college.
25:47
SPEAKER_01: We need you to come back.
25:48
SPEAKER_01: We need you like we we need you to come back for us.
25:50
SPEAKER_03: Uh not only uh your your parents and family here, but there's parents and family in Ecuador that are very happy that you're doing so well, right?
25:56
SPEAKER_03: Uh you I'm sure you can feel that support and their their pride, right?
26:00
SPEAKER_03: And uh in in in your um success, thank thanks be to God in uh in in your studies.
26:05
SPEAKER_03: What year did you say you're in?
26:06
SPEAKER_01: I'm a junior.
26:07
SPEAKER_03: Junior.
26:07
SPEAKER_03: Um and Lori, you said uh you could uh as you were right, that uh um we would pick up quickly that uh um Teddy Eller has an interest in the law.
26:17
SPEAKER_03: Uh you get to know students uh in in your role, is that right?
26:21
SPEAKER_03: And encourage them in their um as they try to figure out their major.
26:25
SPEAKER_00: Um Yeah, they they all the the you know, we are we are welcoming with open arms to all students, right?
26:33
SPEAKER_00: And so when they come to the institute, uh they they can come to our office.
26:38
SPEAKER_00: Like in here, I'll give you a perfect example, which has still to come to fruition, but the groundwork is there.
26:43
SPEAKER_00: Right.
26:43
SPEAKER_00: So so Daniela comes to the office and or we had a phone call and she's telling me about her career aspirations and what she wants and the type of law that she wants to go into and everything.
26:54
SPEAKER_00: And so then I, you know, I get excited.
26:57
SPEAKER_00: W what what gets me excited is making people happy and and getting them to the next step, but just that much faster, right?
27:04
SPEAKER_00: So I'm like, what's the coolest experience I could give this student?
27:08
SPEAKER_00: And what are the coolest experiences that I could give these students?
27:11
SPEAKER_00: And so so um, you know, again, I got on email because there's only one person that I know um who who does this, uh this type of law that she wants to go into, and it was um one of the Supreme Court justices' uh daughters.
27:26
SPEAKER_00: And so I literally, I was like, hey, you know, would you be willing to do this?
27:29
SPEAKER_00: And you know, she tells me over email, yeah, I'll take a few minutes.
27:32
SPEAKER_00: I still have to, you know, follow up.
27:34
SPEAKER_00: But again, I mean like these are the types of things that we do.
27:38
SPEAKER_00: Um, you know, with Christian, for example, um, you know, he he's looking to get into econ and like uh again, I'm I'm connecting him with the person from the New York Federal Reserve.
27:49
SPEAKER_00: I'm connecting him with the There's what we know and there's who we know.
27:52
SPEAKER_00: Yes, connecting with those connections.
27:54
SPEAKER_03: What kind of law?
27:55
SPEAKER_03: Sorry, um is it that Daniela that you wanted to study?
27:57
SPEAKER_01: So I originally started with more criminal law, hence the criminal justice, but over the summer I ended up liking a lot more of fashion law.
28:03
SPEAKER_01: I actually went to New York Fashion Week this year in the fall, and I really enjoyed it and connect with certain lawyers over there that uh uh uh deals a lot with intellectual property and copyright law within the fashion realm.
28:13
SPEAKER_04: Fascinating.
28:14
SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
28:14
SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
28:15
SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
28:16
SPEAKER_04: All right.
28:17
SPEAKER_04: Well, uh any any other uh insights into the institute or the students that are involved that you see.
28:24
SPEAKER_03: And how about maybe parents or students that might be listening that uh uh high school um uh students or or their parents uh uh tell them the few reasons to come to Seton Hall.
28:35
SPEAKER_00: Oh, well well I can give you more than a few.
28:37
SPEAKER_00: So so uh again, when when uh regardless of whether you are an incoming student or family member, or if you're a current student, alumni, community member, this institute is for everyone.
28:51
SPEAKER_00: And a lot of people are live under that assumption that you know it's only for the students.
28:55
SPEAKER_00: It's not only for the students.
28:57
SPEAKER_00: We put out a huge level of programming that's open to the community.
29:01
SPEAKER_00: So coming up uh March 18th, we have Lieutenant Colonel Marisol Chalas, who is the first Latina Black Hawk helicopter pilot for the nation.
29:09
SPEAKER_00: Uh, you know, and we're gonna have the full ROTC, you know, flag ceremony thing for her, and I don't know what the official name for that is.
29:17
SPEAKER_00: But but um but those are those are huge people to meet.
29:20
SPEAKER_00: She's in the Smithsonian, you know, and and then uh you know, so it when we say we bring you the history makers, the barrier breakers, the movers and the shakers of the community, we really do.
29:31
SPEAKER_00: Uh, you know, we're hoping to bring Mario Paredes uh next year.
29:34
SPEAKER_00: We're bringing the Latinos of Broadway who are gonna come as well and and you know just talk about their experience.
29:40
SPEAKER_00: Uh so so the community is is welcome to engage.
29:45
SPEAKER_00: Uh, you know, for parents who are listening, uh uh your your child will be uh you know welcome with open arms and they're gonna find their family away from their family at this institute.
29:57
SPEAKER_00: And all the things that uh you wish you knew had you been in this country, they will find out by engaging, and that's the thing, is it's an engagement.
30:06
SPEAKER_00: For example, at the institute, we had um a young woman who is uh she's a journalist and uh a journalism major and she works for for one of the the school, you know, uh newspapers.
30:19
SPEAKER_00: And she said she's and she was asking me questions about the gala and everything, and and you know, I responded to all the things, but I said, here's your story.
30:27
SPEAKER_00: I said, listen, I haven't seen your face at the institute.
30:31
SPEAKER_00: Where have you been?
30:32
SPEAKER_00: And she's like, you know, I could I could hear her on the other side of the phone.
30:36
SPEAKER_00: And I and and I I said, had you in had you engaged, this is what would have happened, you know, and I would have sat you next to Emmy Award winners and I would have introduced you to Emmy Award winners and I would have made your path towards what you want to achieve that much faster.
30:51
SPEAKER_00: And so she came to the gala and she met a two-time Emmy Award winner, a SHU alumni, Demadis Diaz, who's a who's a she again, she's she's she was our MC.
31:03
SPEAKER_00: And uh Damatis shared her phone number with them.
31:06
SPEAKER_00: Damatis shared her expertise with them.
31:09
SPEAKER_00: She you know, and and at the end of the gala, I told her, I said, listen, here's the big lesson.
31:14
SPEAKER_00: The institute never leaves you.
31:15
SPEAKER_00: You can you know, don't feel like you missed out.
31:18
SPEAKER_00: You didn't.
31:19
SPEAKER_00: You you can engage with the institute at any given point.
31:22
SPEAKER_00: And so that's the type of magic that we make here.
31:25
SPEAKER_00: Those are the types of people that they engage with, and not only that, but they get a lot of love, a lot of fun, and and a lot of celebration because we're also teaching them about the history of our people and how we have always contributed to this country even before it was founded.
31:39
SPEAKER_00: So, so it really is uh an all-encompassing, immersive experience.
31:44
SPEAKER_00: Um, and you know, everybody who engages is is a leader within their own right.
31:49
SPEAKER_03: Great.
31:50
SPEAKER_03: Danielle, maybe a final word.
31:51
SPEAKER_03: Uh what would you say to a high school student thinking about coming to Seton Hall?
31:54
SPEAKER_01: What would be you know, so I would say that you're able to make it.
31:59
SPEAKER_01: I'm gonna be honest with you all.
32:00
SPEAKER_01: If I was able to be here, they can too.
32:03
SPEAKER_01: I say that to my sister.
32:04
SPEAKER_01: My sister's a sophomore right now, and I'm constantly pushing her every day.
32:07
SPEAKER_01: And I I just tell her, I was just like, if I can make it, so can you.
32:10
SPEAKER_01: I say that to my cousins, I say that to most of my family members.
32:13
SPEAKER_01: If I'm here, there's a spot for you here at the same time.
32:14
SPEAKER_03: And Seton Hall has been helpful in that in your making it, right?
32:17
SPEAKER_03: Yes, of course.
32:18
SPEAKER_03: That's great.
32:19
SPEAKER_03: That's great.
32:19
SPEAKER_04: All right.
32:20
SPEAKER_04: Well, thank you so much for sharing all this information and insight about the Institute and for joining us.
32:26
SPEAKER_03: And I guess they can find out more information about the Steat Hall online, right?
32:30
SPEAKER_00: Right.
32:30
SPEAKER_00: So uh yeah, if you thought that the gala this year was was big, just you have no idea who I've been talking to for next year.
32:38
SPEAKER_00: So they could find out about, you know, the Institute and um and uh you know the 2020.
32:46
SPEAKER_03: Yeah, absolutely.
32:47
SPEAKER_03: Check the show notes.
32:48
SPEAKER_00: Online, online.
32:49
SPEAKER_00: Uh just all you have to do is Google Seton Hall University, Latino Institute, and we instantly pop up.
32:55
SPEAKER_00: Um, you know, I encourage you to call me with your questions.
32:58
SPEAKER_00: I'm always accessible and always willing to uh engage.
33:01
SPEAKER_04: Thank you.
33:02
SPEAKER_04: Thanks so much.
33:02
SPEAKER_04: Thanks, Lori.
33:03
SPEAKER_04: Thanks, Daniela.
33:04
SPEAKER_04: Thank you, Christian.
33:06
SPEAKER_03: Um and Bishop, uh any other any any takeaways, thoughts about the Institute, Seton Hall, or or just uh uh, you know, uh we we have a lot to pray for, and uh uh we pray for those who are involved in education at all levels and especially Catholic education, and so we're grateful to Seton Hall for all that they're doing and for and for the institute.
33:27
SPEAKER_03: So um thanks and uh hopefully sharing the information will help others to know about it and take advantage of the opportunity.
33:33
SPEAKER_04: And as soon as we get done here, we're gonna record a uh Espanyol version.
33:37
SPEAKER_04: So st if you want to check out the Espanyol version of the podcast of this episode, that will be available.
33:44
SPEAKER_04: But before I let you go, Bishop, do you have any recommendations you can share with our audience?
33:51
SPEAKER_04: Something you might be reading, listening to, watching?
33:55
SPEAKER_03: Um That's a good question.
33:57
SPEAKER_03: Um I've shared before I'm a big fan of uh Malcolm Gladwell's podcast and uh uh revisionist history, but he's just put out a sequel to a book that he wrote 25 years ago called The Tipping Point.
34:09
SPEAKER_03: It got a lot of uh uh attention at the time.
34:11
SPEAKER_03: And uh he's now in this podcast doing uh kind of a summary of the new book, which has uh been a good thing to listen to.
34:18
SPEAKER_04: Awesome.
34:18
SPEAKER_04: All right, so check that out.
34:20
SPEAKER_04: And check out the show notes for details about the institute and some other things happening in the diocese.
34:26
SPEAKER_04: So thanks again for joining us, and thank you all for watching or listening.
34:31
SPEAKER_04: Please subscribe, comment, and leave a positive rating.
34:34
SPEAKER_04: Get to know us better by following Beyond the Beacon on Facebook or Instagram.
34:38
SPEAKER_04: Email questions and podcast topic ideas to beyond at pattersondioces.org and discover our other podcasts Coffee with Kupke and the Paul Street Journal.
34:49
SPEAKER_04: See you next time.
34:50
SPEAKER_03: Thanks, everybody.
34:51
SPEAKER_03: God bless you.
34:51
SPEAKER_03: Thanks so much, Lori and Daniela.
34:53
SPEAKER_03: Thank you, Larissa.
34:54
SPEAKER_03: Thank you.
34:54
SPEAKER_03: God bless.