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“Now more than ever, we must recognize and accept the complexity of real women and celebrate them in their quest for leadership roles. Whole, multi-dimensional women...it only gets better every time one of us tries.”
— Alejandra Campoverdi
Alejandra Campoverdi describes herself as a “first and only,” meaning she is the “first” generation and “only” person in her family to cross a specific threshold. So fundamental to her identity, being a “first and only” is the core of her life experience and theme of her recent best-selling book, FIRST GEN: A MEMOIR.
“Some of us are first-generation Americans, first-generation college students, or first-generation professionals…we’re the only person of color, woman, or LGBTQ+ person at the table or in the room,” she notes. “The specific borders we breach are different, but what unites us is a shared familiarity with a particular set of experiences, challenges, and expectations that come with the territory.”
Increasingly first-generation students (foreign-born or children of immigrant parents; first to potentially graduate from high school or college) face what Alejandra Campoverdi describes as the Trailblazer Toll – the emotional cost of social and economic mobility. For some, being the family translator, dictionary, or form filler can be exhausting. Simply naming and acknowledging these experiences, she notes, can be both instructive and healing.
Many of us may know someone who is a “first” or an “only” – those of us who’ve been working for more than a few years recall being the “only” woman attending a professional workshop, on a management team, or representing a certain profession. For us, Campoverdi’s recollection rings true.
To be a “first” and “only,” she notes, “is a delicate balance of surviving where you come from while acting like you belong where you’re going.” It’s not easy, nor is it simpler the next time you’re faced with this situation.
Our identity is an essential defining characteristic of a person, affecting how we interact with others and with society. And identity formation typically takes place during adolescence, with ethnic identity developed much earlier. Identity, or sense of self, is a key focus of Chrysalis After-School programs, and one of the driving factors for our original planning to reach adolescent girls.
Plan to join us on Monday, September 30, for our 2024 INSPIRED Event to experience the wisdom and honesty of Alejandra Campoverdi, whose self-described paradox of life experiences created the strong and insightful woman she is today. You’ll walk away both educated and inspired.
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