Q: How is your school year going?

A: It’s been okay, everyone has ups and down. I’m getting used to the classes, like geometry is really hard. Every freshman has this experience that they have no idea what to do, but eventually everything will be good.

Q: Are you involved in any activities on campus?

A: I’m on FCCLA, that’s a community service [club], tomorrow I have my first meeting at ranger time. I missed the first meeting after school because I didn’t have anyone to take me, but tomorrow we’re all going to talk about what we can do for [the] community. Why are you a part of FCCLA? Why do you think it is important to serve the community?

Q: Are you involved in anything outside of school?

A: Yes, I’m on a dance company for hip hop [called] Muv Crew.

Q: What is your experience with that?

A: It’s my first year dancing hip hop. We are competing in Houston this October at Monster. We also went to a commercial workshop in L.A. and shot a video.

Q: Why were you interested in being on the hip hop crew?

A: I have always seen people doing it, and I think it’s a really cool style where you can express yourself in a different way, but where I used to live they didn’t so hip hop classes, so when I came here, I start[ed] searching for hip hop classes. [When] I found them, I started taking some classes. I had no idea [what] the concept of hip hop was, so after a while I just auditioned and got in. Right now I’m just working on my technique, and seeing what I can do better.

Q: How do you feel when you do hip hop?

A: I always feel nervous. I’m one of the youngest in my company, and most of them are on Star Steppers or Blue Belles, from Leander, and they’re juniors and seniors and some sophomores, and they’ve been dancing for the company for 3 years, so I feel nervous, but I try to do my best always. I try to challenge myself, and to prove to the teacher that I can be good.

Q: How did you feel when you were auditioning?

A: I was really nervous, I thought I was going to puke. There were the same girls for 3 years in a row, so I thought I wasn’t gonna make it, that it would be the same ones. I just, I had faith, and I prayed, I literally prayed, I needed to be here, and I do want to be here. I tried my best, and I did it really good. Now I’m just thankful that I’m there.

Q: What was it like moving here?

A: I moved here last year. It was a big move, because I knew nothing about Texas, I’m from Mexico, and I didn’t know English. My school was bilingual, so I had half day English half day Spanish, but it’s like the same that you guys learn in Spanish. You guys learn just a little bit of Spanish, we learn just a little bit of English. ‘We run, you play’, real easy stuff, so last year, in 8th grade, it was my first year in the US. I didn’t know anyone, and I was still learning English, so it was a really hard year for me because I tried to connect with a lot of people and tried to be friendly and make friends, and speaking another language is really hard. Eventually I made some friends, and we’re still friends now, but it was a big step for me moving from Mexico to here. You have no idea. You think [the] U.S. is how you see it in the movies, like High School Musical, yes, I thought it was like High School Musical. I’m just glad and thankful that my parents didn’t change our plans to move. They want the best for us, and I’m having a really good time right here. What was the hardest part and what made it the hardest? Who has impacted you the most from your time in the U.S.?

Q: How has living in the U.S. changed you?

A: Perspective, yes. In Mexico, I didn’t do homework, I was in a private school. I was smart, but I didn’t care that much about colleges, it was just like let’s just finish this and that’s it. When I got here, in 8th grade there were kids doing geometry in my class and I was like whoa I don’t know what they’re doing there. Some people [were] saying I want to go to this college, I want to go to that college. You guys were preparing yourself, meanwhile I was just having fun, so it has changed me to think another perspective of life. It’s not just high school and that’s it, you go to college, and you can go to a good college and you can make it, and be someone in life. That’s what changed me.

Q: Can you describe the craziest thing that has happened to you this year?

A: Yesterday, it was [a] half day, so I told my mom that I was going to go to local slice, but we ended up walking all the way to Whataburger by HEB, but my friends didn’t know how to get there, so my friends found a shortcut into the forest. Luckily we made it to WhataBurger, and after that we went to Starbucks, then they decided to come back here, so we walked again all the way to Vista Ridge from HEB to here. Meanwhile, I fell and dropped my phone and it cracked, and it was new, I got it on Saturday. It has a case on it so I thought nothing would happen, but it broke and I was like ‘Oh no, my parents are going to kill me!’ I was just really worried, and I couldn’t think anymore.