詹妮弗·k·森田著

2022年9月13日

萨尔玛·帕切科知道博彩平台是她的命运。

即使是在她大一的时候，日程安排上的问题威胁到了她，让她的父亲质疑她的大学选择。

“With tears streaming down my face, I said, ‘Yes.’ I was made to go to 囊状态,” Pacheco said.

“I knew I was made to come here to affect the change that students need. Not every student advocates for themselves, not every student feels they have a voice, and I know I have a very strong voice to advocate for them.”

帕切科是2022-23年联合学生公司（ASI）的总裁，创建一个关心和支持学生的社区是她的首要任务。 她成长于一个强大、友爱、亲密的家庭，这在很大程度上推动了她的成就。

“Student government is super important to me because it allows students to have the space to talk to us and be a liaison between them and their administration,” Pacheco said. “It’s overwhelming and nerve-wracking when they have problems and no help or guidance.”

Her leadership role commences as the University celebrates 西班牙服务机构（HSI）周 and Hispanic Heritage Month, Sept. 15-Oct. 15. 囊状态获得了HSI称号 2013年，西班牙裔/拉丁裔学生的入学人数超过了学生总数的25%。

The University also earned the 卓越印章指定 for its commitment to accelerate Latinx student success in higher education. 

“I found through student government, I have a huge passion for advocating for the minority community and those who are under-represented." -- Salma Pacheco, ASI President

帕切科是四姐妹中最小的一个，在洛杉矶的工薪阶层社区帕科马长大。

她坚强、独立的母亲雄心勃勃，在夜校学习英语和计算机技能，同时养家糊口，在全食超市全职工作。

“My mom is the epitome of time management,” Pacheco said. “Every time I sit in the AIRC (Academic Information Resource Center) very late at night, complaining how I can’t finish my paper, I just think about my mother, who was able to give me the most fortunate upbringing I could’ve possibly asked for, while doing things to make herself better to make more money to help raise us.

“If she could do that, then I can finish my paper.”

When the girls were little, their dad stayed home to shuttle them from school, to club meetings, to volunteer work and swim practice – beginning at 4 a.m.

“He’s a girl dad, so he’s our strongest supporter,” Pacheco said. “If I have an issue, he’ll dissect the whole thing and have amazing ideas on how to handle the situation.

"It did take him a while to learn how to do our hair.”

对帕切科来说，选择一所大学很容易。

A Political Science major who one day wants to work in “The Building” – her name for the state Capitol – Pacheco watched her older sister first succeed at 囊状态 and later in the seat of California government as a lobbyist for the Los Angeles City Chamber of Commerce.

“I saw the connections and relationships she built here, and how she forged a career for herself, and I fell in love with that,” Pacheco said.

“Also, my favorite color is green,” she said, referring to the bold 囊状态 color.

对于帕切科来说，“优等生”是一种轻描淡写的说法，她在高中时修了很多大学课程，以至于当她来到萨克州立大学时，被误认为是转校生。

“Salma is bringing a lot of great energy and asking a lot of questions,” ASI Executive Director Sandra Gallardo said. “She’s been very motivated, working through the summer and meeting with President (Robert S.) Nelsen and Vice President for 学生事务 Ed Mills to get her agenda started.”

帕切科加入了Phi Alpha Delta和Ignite等帮助女性参与政治的俱乐部。 她还与支持拉丁裔学生的非营利组织Mujeres Ayudanda la Raza合作。

“It helped me build a lot of friendships with people who look like me and have similar experiences,” Pacheco said. “I believe it helps students be successful if they have a sense of belonging.

“I have friends from all walks of life thanks to 囊状态 being so diverse. But it was beneficial to have a place to practice my Spanglish,” a hybrid that combines words and idioms from both Spanish and English. “It was definitely helpful to feel like I was still me, and that we were acknowledged.”

2022年春，帕切科和劳拉·德拉·加尔萨·加西亚在竞选中无人反对，分别当选为ASI总裁和执行副总裁，为学生，特别是校园中代表性不足的少数民族倡导权益。

“I found through student government, I have a huge passion for advocating for the minority community and those who are under-represented,” Pacheco said.

De La Garza Garcia来自墨西哥的蒙特雷，在她的家人最终定居在曼特卡之前，她在密歇根州住了几年。

“Moving to California was a huge culture shock,” De La Garza Garcia said. “In a good way. 你会看到像我这样的人，不一定是在领导岗位上，因为我意识到这一点仍然缺失。 But you’ve got people from different cultures and ethnic backgrounds.”

ASI董事会最近在战略规划静修期间制定了2022-23学年的目标。

“They have their fingers on the pulse of the University since they’re students themselves,” Gallardo said. “So it’s always great to see them create these goals and work through how they will accomplish them in the coming year. There’s a lot of great energy, and I’m excited for this group.”

In addition to student advocacy and mental health issues, one of the board’s priorities this year is to consider how to help students find jobs after graduation.

“Students were online for two years, and they didn’t have access to internships or networking so they’re struggling to find jobs,” De La Garza Garcia said. “We want to bridge that gap by working with partners on campus, highlighting the opportunities that are already there that students don’t know about.”

两位女性都想让大学领导负起责任，并确保学生得到支持。

“We are the voice for more than 30,000 students,” De La Garza Garcia said. “We’re advocating for students, and trying to make the campus better.”