Naima Patel (Image credit: Andrew Brodhead)

I grew up in Kansas. It’s been interesting navigating that with Indian roots, but I had a great childhood. My parents are super supportive. They’re here with me.

I brought lot of idols with me from home. We’re Hindu, so a lot of idols that my mom used to pray with.

I chose Stanford for a lot of reasons. The weather. Being close to Silicon Valley is obviously huge. And I really want to be in California in general and especially because I’m doing STEM and environmental stuff. And I’m obsessed with palm trees. I was like, “How can I be sad if I’m surrounded by palm trees?”

I’m considering majoring in environmental engineering. And I’m planning on minoring in gender studies.

Being on campus is unreal. I took a gap year, too, and I never was able to visit because I saved all my college visits for admit weekends and that all got canceled. And so it’s kind of been two years in the making. It’s a dream come true.

I’m  definitely just trying to find a home here, make this place feel like home. Just make a good community and explore things I’m actually interested in.

Naima Patel (Image credit: Andrew Brodhead)

I grew up in Kansas. It’s been interesting navigating that with Indian roots, but I had a great childhood. My parents are super supportive. They’re here with me.

I brought lot of idols with me from home. We’re Hindu, so a lot of idols that my mom used to pray with.

I chose Stanford for a lot of reasons. The weather. Being close to Silicon Valley is obviously huge. And I really want to be in California in general and especially because I’m doing STEM and environmental stuff. And I’m obsessed with palm trees. I was like, “How can I be sad if I’m surrounded by palm trees?”

I’m considering majoring in environmental engineering. And I’m planning on minoring in gender studies.

Being on campus is unreal. I took a gap year, too, and I never was able to visit because I saved all my college visits for admit weekends and that all got canceled. And so it’s kind of been two years in the making. It’s a dream come true.

I’m  definitely just trying to find a home here, make this place feel like home. Just make a good community and explore things I’m actually interested in.

Julia An Kao-Sowa and Alawab Aldulimy. (Image credit: Andrew Brodhead)

Julia: I’m from right outside Washington, D.C., in Northern Virginia. I kind of miss it, but I’m really excited to live in California. I have two older brothers. The oldest one actually graduated from Stanford a little bit ago. My parents really support me. That’s why I’m here.

Alawab: I was here last year on campus and I met a few of my friends in our dorm. But for the most part, most of the students that were in my classes, I haven’t met them yet. I’ve only met and worked with them online.

Julia: We just go back from SPOT, our pre-orientation trip where we go camping with a bunch of new freshmen. We went to Point Reyes. It was honestly one of the best experiences ever. It was so much fun. And I was able to get really close to a lot of new people, which was really amazing.

Alawab: Each group had two leaders. (I was one.) The whole idea was to bring this random group of strangers together, all freshmen. At first, people were shy. So my other co-lead and I, we had to facilitate things. But then the group came together. They shared a lot of their pandemic experiences. They bonded over all these strange things that we never saw coming. Then they got each other’s numbers and now they’re staying in touch. We said goodbye just a few minutes ago.

Julia: I chose Stanford for so many reasons. First of all, it’s really good for bioengineering. The weather’s obviously great. And the people here are just so incredibly smart, but also supportive at the same time.

Alawab: Being on campus right now is unimaginable. It’s a wonderful experience to see students and bikes everywhere, parents walking their freshman students in to their dorms. Last year, I got used to seeing the streets here empty and all the buildings closed. Now I see them all open again, and people sitting down. It just feels like campus is back. It’s alive again.

Julia: It’s just so crazy to actually be here, to think this is my home. I’m looking forward to taking a lot of basic engineering courses, getting a good foundation, and also exploring cool classes. There’s one on sea kayaking and there’s one on marine biology that I’m really excited about. I’m just super excited to meet everyone. I’m really looking forward to starting on the next four years.

Julia An Kao-Sowa and Alawab Aldulimy. (Image credit: Andrew Brodhead)

Julia: I’m from right outside Washington, D.C., in Northern Virginia. I kind of miss it, but I’m really excited to live in California. I have two older brothers. The oldest one actually graduated from Stanford a little bit ago. My parents really support me. That’s why I’m here.

Alawab: I was here last year on campus and I met a few of my friends in our dorm. But for the most part, most of the students that were in my classes, I haven’t met them yet. I’ve only met and worked with them online.

Julia: We just go back from SPOT, our pre-orientation trip where we go camping with a bunch of new freshmen. We went to Point Reyes. It was honestly one of the best experiences ever. It was so much fun. And I was able to get really close to a lot of new people, which was really amazing.

Alawab: Each group had two leaders. (I was one.) The whole idea was to bring this random group of strangers together, all freshmen. At first, people were shy. So my other co-lead and I, we had to facilitate things. But then the group came together. They shared a lot of their pandemic experiences. They bonded over all these strange things that we never saw coming. Then they got each other’s numbers and now they’re staying in touch. We said goodbye just a few minutes ago.

Julia: I chose Stanford for so many reasons. First of all, it’s really good for bioengineering. The weather’s obviously great. And the people here are just so incredibly smart, but also supportive at the same time.

Alawab: Being on campus right now is unimaginable. It’s a wonderful experience to see students and bikes everywhere, parents walking their freshman students in to their dorms. Last year, I got used to seeing the streets here empty and all the buildings closed. Now I see them all open again, and people sitting down. It just feels like campus is back. It’s alive again.

Julia: It’s just so crazy to actually be here, to think this is my home. I’m looking forward to taking a lot of basic engineering courses, getting a good foundation, and also exploring cool classes. There’s one on sea kayaking and there’s one on marine biology that I’m really excited about. I’m just super excited to meet everyone. I’m really looking forward to starting on the next four years.

Juliana Lamm-Perez, right, and Jasmine Gonzalez (Image credit: Andrew Brodhead)

Jasmine: I was born in San Rafael, which is a town in Marin County, on the other side of the Golden Gate Bridge. I went to middle school there, and then I went to high school in San Francisco. My brother and I actually went to rival high schools. We’d have a basketball game where both teams were playing, girls and boys … it was interesting having my parents cheering for both.

Juliana: I was born in Boston, but I moved to San Francisco when I was four. So, I’ve been there my whole life. I spent half of my childhood living with my grandparents, which was really nice. I grew up mostly in the Richmond district.

Jasmine: I chose Stanford because I think the community is just really beautiful. It seems so open. The weather’s amazing. It’s close enough to home that I can always visit if I need to, but it’s far enough away that I’m kind of living a separate life. And of course the academics are wonderful.

Juliana: it’s a friendly environment, social, collaborative. And the D1 sports are pretty cool.

Jasmine: I would love to major in economics, and I think I want to do a co-term in management science and engineering. I’m super excited to take this chemistry of cooking class in winter quarter. It’s an IntroSem and it looks phenomenal. Apparently you cook in every class.

Juliana: I’m considering majoring in political science. After the 2016 election, I got really interested in politics and campaigning. I listened to this one podcast over the pandemic, about the Supreme Court and different landmark cases that aren’t necessarily well known but have changed the face of politics. That was absolutely fascinating to me.

Jasmine: It’s really fun to be around all my classmates. It’s a little overwhelming meeting so many people because my high school was only 100 people per grade, but it’s kind of exciting.

Juliana: It’s only my second day here, but I’m really excited to meet everyone, make a lot of friends, learn a lot.

Juliana Lamm-Perez, right, and Jasmine Gonzalez (Image credit: Andrew Brodhead)

Jasmine: I was born in San Rafael, which is a town in Marin County, on the other side of the Golden Gate Bridge. I went to middle school there, and then I went to high school in San Francisco. My brother and I actually went to rival high schools. We’d have a basketball game where both teams were playing, girls and boys … it was interesting having my parents cheering for both.

Juliana: I was born in Boston, but I moved to San Francisco when I was four. So, I’ve been there my whole life. I spent half of my childhood living with my grandparents, which was really nice. I grew up mostly in the Richmond district.

Jasmine: I chose Stanford because I think the community is just really beautiful. It seems so open. The weather’s amazing. It’s close enough to home that I can always visit if I need to, but it’s far enough away that I’m kind of living a separate life. And of course the academics are wonderful.

Juliana: it’s a friendly environment, social, collaborative. And the D1 sports are pretty cool.

Jasmine: I would love to major in economics, and I think I want to do a co-term in management science and engineering. I’m super excited to take this chemistry of cooking class in winter quarter. It’s an IntroSem and it looks phenomenal. Apparently you cook in every class.

Juliana: I’m considering majoring in political science. After the 2016 election, I got really interested in politics and campaigning. I listened to this one podcast over the pandemic, about the Supreme Court and different landmark cases that aren’t necessarily well known but have changed the face of politics. That was absolutely fascinating to me.

Jasmine: It’s really fun to be around all my classmates. It’s a little overwhelming meeting so many people because my high school was only 100 people per grade, but it’s kind of exciting.

Juliana: It’s only my second day here, but I’m really excited to meet everyone, make a lot of friends, learn a lot.

Kaylee Shen, left, and Linda Vera. (Image credit: Andrew Brodhead)

Kaylee: I grew up in Olympia, Washington. It’s a pretty average suburban town. I really liked the community. I mean, of course Stanford weather is amazing, especially compared to Olympia where it rained a lot. But it was a great community and I will definitely remember it forever.

Linda: I’m from the Dallas-Fort Worth area of Texas. Haltom City, specifically. The weather is a lot hotter than here in California. We were surrounded by a lot of diversity compared to the rest of Texas. I have a twin sister and then a little sister, 10 years younger than I am.

Kaylee: At Stanford, I’m most looking forward to all the clubs and the fun traditions. And also joining the marching band and venturing out of my comfort zone. I played the oboe in high school. I’m looking to pick up a new instrument, maybe. Maybe something completely different, like trumpet.

Linda: I chose Stanford because … it’s Stanford. I wanted to come for the academics. And the study abroad programs were also very appealing.

Kaylee: I’m thinking about majoring in earth systems and maybe minoring in economics. My 20-year plan is to, I don’t know, fix the American agricultural system? But in the next four years I just hope I’ll learn a lot and be prepared for whatever… I guess learn how to learn effectively. That’s a big thing.

Linda: I’m planning to major in international relations. And I enjoy languages so I can see Spanish and some Chinese as well. I want to work towards fixing the immigration policy in Texas.

Kaylee: Being here is wild. I’ve really missed seeing people during the pandemic, so it’s great to be part of a community again and especially a community as amazing as this one. I’m just really, really happy to be here.

Linda: It’s beautiful. There’s a lot of space. The climate is amazing. Everyone’s friendly and very inclusive. I’m ready to make new memories.

Kaylee Shen, left, and Linda Vera. (Image credit: Andrew Brodhead)

Kaylee: I grew up in Olympia, Washington. It’s a pretty average suburban town. I really liked the community. I mean, of course Stanford weather is amazing, especially compared to Olympia where it rained a lot. But it was a great community and I will definitely remember it forever.

Linda: I’m from the Dallas-Fort Worth area of Texas. Haltom City, specifically. The weather is a lot hotter than here in California. We were surrounded by a lot of diversity compared to the rest of Texas. I have a twin sister and then a little sister, 10 years younger than I am.

Kaylee: At Stanford, I’m most looking forward to all the clubs and the fun traditions. And also joining the marching band and venturing out of my comfort zone. I played the oboe in high school. I’m looking to pick up a new instrument, maybe. Maybe something completely different, like trumpet.

Linda: I chose Stanford because … it’s Stanford. I wanted to come for the academics. And the study abroad programs were also very appealing.

Kaylee: I’m thinking about majoring in earth systems and maybe minoring in economics. My 20-year plan is to, I don’t know, fix the American agricultural system? But in the next four years I just hope I’ll learn a lot and be prepared for whatever… I guess learn how to learn effectively. That’s a big thing.

Linda: I’m planning to major in international relations. And I enjoy languages so I can see Spanish and some Chinese as well. I want to work towards fixing the immigration policy in Texas.

Kaylee: Being here is wild. I’ve really missed seeing people during the pandemic, so it’s great to be part of a community again and especially a community as amazing as this one. I’m just really, really happy to be here.

Linda: It’s beautiful. There’s a lot of space. The climate is amazing. Everyone’s friendly and very inclusive. I’m ready to make new memories.

Cate Celio, left, and Aerin Eberts. (Image credit: Andrew Brodhead)

Aerin: I’m from New York City and I really loved growing up there. The city is such vibrant place and I just loved being surrounded by so many different people and so many different things to do.

Cate: I was born in San Francisco but I grew up in Palo Alto. So I came here for football games. I came for basketball games. It was always nice sort of having Stanford nearby and now I’m here and I’m exploring a whole new part of campus.

Aerin: I chose Stanford because I really like the focus on interdisciplinary education and the fact that the quarter system allows me to explore more interests. And I also just think it’s a great place with a lot of great people. I’m really excited to meet everyone.

Cate: I’m interested in both computer science and music, and that’s something that’s pretty difficult to pursue, combined or even separately at other places. Here there are so many different programs for that. It’s just really cool that interdisciplinary studies are integrated in departments. It makes things so much easier.

Aerin: I was thinking of classics or history, or some combination of the two. I’ve been doing Latin for seven years and ancient Greek for four years. I just love the workings of the languages. I think the grammatical idiosyncrasies are really interesting. With history, I just find the past fascinating and I think that in order to understand the present and to make the world a better place in the present, we have to understand the past first.

Cate: Something that I’m pretty interested in is getting more women into STEM. It’s very white and male-dominated, so it’d be nice to get more diversity there.

Aerin: Being on campus, it’s a bit of a shock to see so many new faces. Especially because I went to the same school for 13 years. But it’s really wonderful after a time of being so isolated to just be brought into a whole new community where everyone’s so excited and eager to meet.

Cate: It’s so nice to see people and be able to explore physical spaces. I’m so excited for in-person classes after Zoom.

Cate Celio, left, and Aerin Eberts. (Image credit: Andrew Brodhead)

Aerin: I’m from New York City and I really loved growing up there. The city is such vibrant place and I just loved being surrounded by so many different people and so many different things to do.

Cate: I was born in San Francisco but I grew up in Palo Alto. So I came here for football games. I came for basketball games. It was always nice sort of having Stanford nearby and now I’m here and I’m exploring a whole new part of campus.

Aerin: I chose Stanford because I really like the focus on interdisciplinary education and the fact that the quarter system allows me to explore more interests. And I also just think it’s a great place with a lot of great people. I’m really excited to meet everyone.

Cate: I’m interested in both computer science and music, and that’s something that’s pretty difficult to pursue, combined or even separately at other places. Here there are so many different programs for that. It’s just really cool that interdisciplinary studies are integrated in departments. It makes things so much easier.

Aerin: I was thinking of classics or history, or some combination of the two. I’ve been doing Latin for seven years and ancient Greek for four years. I just love the workings of the languages. I think the grammatical idiosyncrasies are really interesting. With history, I just find the past fascinating and I think that in order to understand the present and to make the world a better place in the present, we have to understand the past first.

Cate: Something that I’m pretty interested in is getting more women into STEM. It’s very white and male-dominated, so it’d be nice to get more diversity there.

Aerin: Being on campus, it’s a bit of a shock to see so many new faces. Especially because I went to the same school for 13 years. But it’s really wonderful after a time of being so isolated to just be brought into a whole new community where everyone’s so excited and eager to meet.

Cate: It’s so nice to see people and be able to explore physical spaces. I’m so excited for in-person classes after Zoom.

Leo Andrade, left, and Spencer Wallace. (Image credit: Andrew Brodhead)

Leo: I’m from the Central Valley, from a city between Bakersfield and Fresno. My parents immigrated from Mexico before I was born. I have two younger brothers. My mom is a housewife. My dad works in agriculture, driving citrus to the packing houses. My family is close, mainly because we don’t have any family nearby.

Spencer: I’m from Brentwood, California. I have an older sister and a younger sister. My family’s really into building stuff, so growing up I built carts, tricycles and sailing vehicles. We did Odyssey of the Mind, which is a building competition where teams complete a set of tasks and problems while performing a skit.

Leo: One thing I brought with me to campus is a soccer scarf from my high school team. And a plush from a friend that represents the start of our friendship.

Spencer: I brought this digital clock I made with my uncle. It’s got seven segment displays, an internal crystal oscillator and binary counters inside. It displays seconds, hours, and minutes. It’s really steampunk-esque. Reminds me of my family.

Leo: I chose Stanford because of the community. Everyone is super friendly and many distinct backgrounds are linked together here, and they mingle really well. Also, I’m from a low-income family. So Stanford really helped me with financial aid. Other universities offered financial packages, but they weren’t as good.

Spencer: This fall, I’m taking CS 106B along with CS 106M, which is like the add-on class for CS 106B. I’m really interested in computer science, so I want to get my hands dirty immediately. Eventually, I’m interested in making more democratic workplaces where workers have more of a say in what they do and how much they’re paid.

Leo: I’m looking forward to trying out club volleyball and the chess club. I’ve been playing chess for a while now, but I took a break from it because of COVID. In the next four years, I want to grow as a person here. I want to meet new people and I want to learn multiple perspectives in order to get a full understanding of serious issues.

Leo Andrade, left, and Spencer Wallace. (Image credit: Andrew Brodhead)

Leo: I’m from the Central Valley, from a city between Bakersfield and Fresno. My parents immigrated from Mexico before I was born. I have two younger brothers. My mom is a housewife. My dad works in agriculture, driving citrus to the packing houses. My family is close, mainly because we don’t have any family nearby.

Spencer: I’m from Brentwood, California. I have an older sister and a younger sister. My family’s really into building stuff, so growing up I built carts, tricycles and sailing vehicles. We did Odyssey of the Mind, which is a building competition where teams complete a set of tasks and problems while performing a skit.

Leo: One thing I brought with me to campus is a soccer scarf from my high school team. And a plush from a friend that represents the start of our friendship.

Spencer: I brought this digital clock I made with my uncle. It’s got seven segment displays, an internal crystal oscillator and binary counters inside. It displays seconds, hours, and minutes. It’s really steampunk-esque. Reminds me of my family.

Leo: I chose Stanford because of the community. Everyone is super friendly and many distinct backgrounds are linked together here, and they mingle really well. Also, I’m from a low-income family. So Stanford really helped me with financial aid. Other universities offered financial packages, but they weren’t as good.

Spencer: This fall, I’m taking CS 106B along with CS 106M, which is like the add-on class for CS 106B. I’m really interested in computer science, so I want to get my hands dirty immediately. Eventually, I’m interested in making more democratic workplaces where workers have more of a say in what they do and how much they’re paid.

Leo: I’m looking forward to trying out club volleyball and the chess club. I’ve been playing chess for a while now, but I took a break from it because of COVID. In the next four years, I want to grow as a person here. I want to meet new people and I want to learn multiple perspectives in order to get a full understanding of serious issues.

From left, Maryam M Khalil, Imaan Jasmine Ibrahim and Tori Lynn Hoge. (Image credit: Andrew Brodhead)

Maryam: I’m from Lee’s Summit, Missouri and Misrata, Libya. I was born in the States, and I’ve spent my entire life back and forth between the two. I think I’ve learned a lot about how to navigate conversations with people who don’t understand your identity, don’t understand your opinions, don’t understand where you’ve come from. But I like that I’m from Missouri. It’s built a lot of who I am.

Tori: I’m from Thousand Oaks, California, which is about 45 minutes outside of LA. It’s very sunny, very beachy.

Imaan: I’m from Orange County. I have two siblings and we’re ethnically from Sierra Leone, but we’ve lived in Orange County our whole lives.

Maryam: I’m an RA in Larkin. It’s super exciting to be welcoming freshmen to campus. But it’s funny because they think we (juniors) should know things. And we’re like, “What do we know? We’ve only had two official quarters on campus.” But I feel like I wouldn’t be the person I am without having had that space from Stanford, being able to be alone in ways and think about why I’m doing what I’m doing.

Tori: Dorm staff is super encouraging, funny, helpful. It’s not a condescending vibe. It’s more like, “I’m on the same level as you, I relate to you, you relate to me and we can have open conversations about anything.” They’re here to make connections and get to know us and help out.

Imaan: It’s been really amazing and accepting.

Tori: Maryam promised us that she was going to take us fountain hopping at some point. So it was literally the second day here, and we were going down the halls with a speaker just yelling at people, “If anyone wants to come, meet in the lounge!” And then we just gathered a big ol’ group. None of us knew anyone, and we ended up going to a bunch of different fountains.

Maryam: I feel like the freshmen this year are much more okay with – I don’t know how to say it. They’re just happy to be together. The pandemic has made that more of a thing, where we are just super, super happy to be around other people, holding space together.

For me, I’m so excited to be able to go to actual in-person events, like the Arab Spring Fair. And also reuniting with my friends, human connection. It’s so nice to see people after a year and a half away.

From left, Maryam M Khalil, Imaan Jasmine Ibrahim and Tori Lynn Hoge. (Image credit: Andrew Brodhead)

Maryam: I’m from Lee’s Summit, Missouri and Misrata, Libya. I was born in the States, and I’ve spent my entire life back and forth between the two. I think I’ve learned a lot about how to navigate conversations with people who don’t understand your identity, don’t understand your opinions, don’t understand where you’ve come from. But I like that I’m from Missouri. It’s built a lot of who I am.

Tori: I’m from Thousand Oaks, California, which is about 45 minutes outside of LA. It’s very sunny, very beachy.

Imaan: I’m from Orange County. I have two siblings and we’re ethnically from Sierra Leone, but we’ve lived in Orange County our whole lives.

Maryam: I’m an RA in Larkin. It’s super exciting to be welcoming freshmen to campus. But it’s funny because they think we (juniors) should know things. And we’re like, “What do we know? We’ve only had two official quarters on campus.” But I feel like I wouldn’t be the person I am without having had that space from Stanford, being able to be alone in ways and think about why I’m doing what I’m doing.

Tori: Dorm staff is super encouraging, funny, helpful. It’s not a condescending vibe. It’s more like, “I’m on the same level as you, I relate to you, you relate to me and we can have open conversations about anything.” They’re here to make connections and get to know us and help out.

Imaan: It’s been really amazing and accepting.

Tori: Maryam promised us that she was going to take us fountain hopping at some point. So it was literally the second day here, and we were going down the halls with a speaker just yelling at people, “If anyone wants to come, meet in the lounge!” And then we just gathered a big ol’ group. None of us knew anyone, and we ended up going to a bunch of different fountains.

Maryam: I feel like the freshmen this year are much more okay with – I don’t know how to say it. They’re just happy to be together. The pandemic has made that more of a thing, where we are just super, super happy to be around other people, holding space together.

For me, I’m so excited to be able to go to actual in-person events, like the Arab Spring Fair. And also reuniting with my friends, human connection. It’s so nice to see people after a year and a half away.

Chijioke Chinaza Mgbahurike. (Image credit: Andrew Brodhead)

I’m from Dallas, but I was born in Lagos, Nigeria. Texas is cool. Really hot and really humid, but the people there are amazing and like to have a good time. My mom came here for a better education for her children and because she wanted us to have better opportunities in life. I’m one of five children. I have four other siblings: three brothers, one sister.

I chose Stanford because I want to do computer science, but I also really want to pursue philosophy. I feel like Stanford was the only place, easily, that allowed me to embrace those two sides of myself without compromising, because of the amount of freedom they give their students to explore and be curious.

So far, I’ve loved it. The people here are amazing – just so many walks of life, different ideas. I also love the atmosphere on campus. It’s very lowkey, not heavy stress.

One thing I’m interested in doing is helping low-income communities in tech and showing them coding skills and whatnot. I love computer science, but I’m always sad about the access, the barriers to entry for so many people. People think it’s really hard or abstract. I’m trying to show them, no it’s not. You can do it. Anyone can do it.

Another thing I want to do is the Stanford Student Space Initiative. And I also want to be the Tree sometime in my career. Auditioning for that and doing all the wacky and crazy things is something I really want to do – probably around junior or senior year. You have to have a presence, you have to build yourself up first. I have time.

Chijioke Chinaza Mgbahurike. (Image credit: Andrew Brodhead)

I’m from Dallas, but I was born in Lagos, Nigeria. Texas is cool. Really hot and really humid, but the people there are amazing and like to have a good time. My mom came here for a better education for her children and because she wanted us to have better opportunities in life. I’m one of five children. I have four other siblings: three brothers, one sister.

I chose Stanford because I want to do computer science, but I also really want to pursue philosophy. I feel like Stanford was the only place, easily, that allowed me to embrace those two sides of myself without compromising, because of the amount of freedom they give their students to explore and be curious.

So far, I’ve loved it. The people here are amazing – just so many walks of life, different ideas. I also love the atmosphere on campus. It’s very lowkey, not heavy stress.

One thing I’m interested in doing is helping low-income communities in tech and showing them coding skills and whatnot. I love computer science, but I’m always sad about the access, the barriers to entry for so many people. People think it’s really hard or abstract. I’m trying to show them, no it’s not. You can do it. Anyone can do it.

Another thing I want to do is the Stanford Student Space Initiative. And I also want to be the Tree sometime in my career. Auditioning for that and doing all the wacky and crazy things is something I really want to do – probably around junior or senior year. You have to have a presence, you have to build yourself up first. I have time.

Luis Cruz. (Image credit: Andrew Brodhead)

I’m from East Los Angeles. It’s like a very Latin community, rooted in Chicano activism. We had the East L.A. Walkouts, where a bunch of Chicano students were advocating for things like bilingual courses and more Latin teachers, and the Zoot Suit Riots, during World War II.

I have three sisters, two older and one younger.

I chose Stanford more because I wanted a change of scenery. I wanted to branch out and explore different cultures. I also do Ballet Folklórico, so I kind of wanted to immerse myself in that space. I’m planning to Ballet Folklórico de Stanford. I also want to do Extreme, which is another dance group here. And I am thinking of joining El Centro Chicano y Latino. And I also want to do the Native American Cultural Center.

Being on campus, I don’t want to say I’m overwhelmed, but I feel really full of emotions, really happy to be here. Not only am I seeing people after a long while of quarantine, but I also have the opportunity to study at such a prestigious school, and that puts me in a place where I can represent my community and, you know, take my knowledge that I learn here into my community.

At the end of the day, what I like to do is help people, in any way, shape or form. I want to support people. I want to give back to my community, you know, give them resources that I wish I had while I was applying to college. Stuff like that.

One tradition I’m excited for is the Cal vs. Stanford game because I have a couple friends at Cal. So I feel like if we win, I’d like to rub it in their faces.

Luis Cruz. (Image credit: Andrew Brodhead)

I’m from East Los Angeles. It’s like a very Latin community, rooted in Chicano activism. We had the East L.A. Walkouts, where a bunch of Chicano students were advocating for things like bilingual courses and more Latin teachers, and the Zoot Suit Riots, during World War II.

I have three sisters, two older and one younger.

I chose Stanford more because I wanted a change of scenery. I wanted to branch out and explore different cultures. I also do Ballet Folklórico, so I kind of wanted to immerse myself in that space. I’m planning to Ballet Folklórico de Stanford. I also want to do Extreme, which is another dance group here. And I am thinking of joining El Centro Chicano y Latino. And I also want to do the Native American Cultural Center.

Being on campus, I don’t want to say I’m overwhelmed, but I feel really full of emotions, really happy to be here. Not only am I seeing people after a long while of quarantine, but I also have the opportunity to study at such a prestigious school, and that puts me in a place where I can represent my community and, you know, take my knowledge that I learn here into my community.

At the end of the day, what I like to do is help people, in any way, shape or form. I want to support people. I want to give back to my community, you know, give them resources that I wish I had while I was applying to college. Stuff like that.

One tradition I’m excited for is the Cal vs. Stanford game because I have a couple friends at Cal. So I feel like if we win, I’d like to rub it in their faces.