Baruch Scholars 2016

Princess what? Princess Diana, Princess Isabella, Princess Elizabeth. No just Princess. All my life I have been questioned about my name. The most common reaction is 2 lines forming between someone’s eye brows with the most confused face someone can have. Then seconds later chuckling and once again asking “No, what is your real name?” Now this time the word “real” has been emphasized.

So whose brilliant idea was it to name me Princess? I guess we can blame it on my mother. Let’s start off by telling you how I got this name.

Once upon a time… in a land far far away (well really not that far away here in New York) my mother was about to give birth. She didn’t trust the hospital near where we lived at the time or any other hospital that was not in Manhattan. She called a cab to take her to the city. With traffic jams, during rush hour she felt as if I was going to be born in the back of the cab and all she could do was hope for the best. Somehow her prayers were answered and she got to the hospital before it was time. The cab driver offered to take her in and she thought she could make it since it was only a few steps till the entrance.

As she wanted to start walking, she couldn’t move at all. Her feet didn’t obey the chemical signals sent from her brain (probably not right, but you get the point).  She’s told me this story a billion and one times and she keeps changing it but somehow as a firefighter was coming out of the emergency room, he had seen her struggling to move and had ran up to her and had said, “Are you okay miss? Did your water break?” My mom with her not so great English at the time had understood if she would like some water. She happily said yes of course and the next thing she knew she was swung off her feet, onto his “strong muscular, vein popping” hands. He rushed her in and had said “SHE’S GIVING BIRTH. SHE”S GIVING BIRTH!”

You know what happens next. As she heard me screaming all she could do was smile. It was all over. Her second son was born. The doctor held me and as she was passing me onto my mother’s hands she congratulated my mom saying “It’s a girl.” My parents never knew if I was going to be a boy or a girl because the doctor had told that it was a 50/50 chance. As my mom held me onto her arms as sweat dripped down her forehead she asked the doctor that helped deliver me, her name. The doctor smiled and showed her, her name tag. It read “Dr. Princess B.” Till this day she can’t remember her last name but does swear that her first name was Princess.

So instead of being Jessica G. Reinoso, I was changed to be Princess G. Reinoso. She hopes, my mother that is, that I can grow up and be a doctor one day. Just like the doctor that delivered me. Beautiful, intelligent, friendly, and caring. Little does my mom know that the sight of blood makes me faint, that I don’t understand biology for my life, and I cannot stick a needle into anyone.

So here I am at Baruch trying to study anything other than the science field. Because if I became a doctor, we would have no hope.

P.S. My dad thought I was a boy. He arrived at the hospital that afternoon with my brother in his hand, a bouquet of roses for my mom, and the biggest bluest balloon in hand reading “It’s a boy.” My mom laughed at the site as she said go take a look for yourself. I understand you can’t really tell ESPECIALLY when babies are just born if they’re a boy or a girl but my dad’s mind was set. He even said, “that’s my boy.” My mom couldn’t stop laughing that she asked my dad to change my diaper. He thought my mom was crazy because of giving birth he just gave her that, we’ll get you some help smile. He grabbed me in his arms. Opened the diaper, and…Surprise! It was me. A girl. My dad faced turned completely red with tears running down both his cheeks and the biggest smile a man could have as he ran to kiss my mother.

Being born and raised in Brooklyn, I actually love living in New York City. Although the commute is long to Baruch, no other school outside the city has the same diverse environment. No other state can understand our slang terms and how we speak, which makes us unique. NY is like no other place in the world; I would never want to live anywhere else, but I would want to study abroad and travel in a few years. I am pretty introverted and enjoy just staying home and watching TV. I watch all types of shows, and I can’t even count how many I watch. Game of Thrones, of course, is my favorite, but I also like reality TV like Big Brother. I would like to get out of my comfort zone as I continue through college.

As an incoming freshman, the first semester I’m just trying to get acclimated to the environment. Attending Baruch is much like my high school in terms of the huge population and diverse population. The workload seems the same- for now, and the classes as well. But unlike high school, I appreciate how independent everyone is. I like that you can follow your own schedule, and do as you please. You can leave whenever you want without anyone questioning you. You don’t even need to ask to use the bathroom; you can just walk out. As of right now I still don’t know what place I fit in in Baruch. I’m still trying to figure out what clubs I would like, and what I should major in. But I’m hopeful as time goes on I’ll figure it out.

It’s probably common to think back to your first days of high school during your first days of college. My first days of high school I was just beginning to make my first true friends that I ever had, but I never thought I would be someone to consistently be friends with someone, as I never had before. My first days of college I was missing those friends from ninth grade, and I realized I’m not who I once was. And that’s completely for the better.

I never expected to become the person I am today. My hopes and dreams back then were not clear. I did not have a path that drastically changed throughout high school, as many people tell in their life stories, but rather I instead gained a semi-clear path that has been consistent for the past few years. I can’t say music itself changed me completely, but the experiences I had in high school with music changed me.

I talk about music a lot, but when you really care about something that often is the case. Ninth grade my best friend asked me to join a band for a talent show. Our band, although with many changes in members and fights along the way, lasted until twelfth grade and by far Fridays when we practiced were my favorite days. Tenth grade i joined chorus as a result of a deal that my two best friends and I would all join together. I didn’t expect much, as many people just take chorus as an “easy” class, but my year of tenth grade chorus transformed me into someone who not only began to understand written music, but in the long run formed my passion for music. I also ended up joining the musical, Oliver, in tenth grade, since my girlfriend was doing it. It may seem like a stupid reason to join, but clearly it was worth my time as the two next years I performed in the musicals, My Fair Lady and Cinderella, as well. Eleventh grade I auditioned for my male acapella group, the Crooners, and to my surprise I made it. It wasn’t a lack of confidence that made me feel that I wouldn’t get in, but it was more so that my knowledge of music, especially sight singing, was not on par with most of the other people in the group. But my teacher had expectations that I would improve, and she was right. Twelfth grade was a continuation of some of the same experiences, but I remember a certain experience that changed my views on my future.

The summer before twelfth grade I went on college visits. My first college visit was to New York University, which at that time I really thought I would be attending. Although I did not end up going to NYU, that college visit was necessary. My tour guide was speaking about her major, Music Business, which I at that point did not know existed. When I thought of music majors I thought of performance, composition, education, all aspects of music I could not see myself finding success in. The pure act of my tour guide stating that this was her major made me instantly realize this is where I wanted to be headed. I believe I even wrote one of my Macaulay application essays on this experience.

My favorite song throughout twelfth grade, which turned into the year I came to many realizations and conclusions about my high school years, was and still is December by Neck Deep, which I ironically started listening to frequently in December. I sang this for a college audition, I sing it in my car, I even sang it while playing hallway soccer in my dorm last week. Everyone has something that makes them happy at any given time, a song, a show, sleep. For me it is listening to this song (even though it isn’t an upbeat or extremely happy song).

Art is the expression of creation.  I express how I am feeling through it.  Movement, growth, acceptance can all be portrayed through color, paint, photography, fashion.  All that is me is art.

I relate to fashion more than any other art form because it is expression in its purest forms.  I wake up every morning feeling different.  Life experiences shape who you are, so why wouldn’t I be slightly different in every instance.  Therefore, my ever changing being cannot be defined.  I choose my outfit in the morning because it helps me to show how I feel for that day.  Bright colors for those sunny days, the happy times.  When I feel edgy, I mix tones and color pallets that would be considered unexpected.  Fashion is not mainstream, it is art.  It is different for each and every one of us, whether we like it or not.

Taking pictures just got easier.  We all have phones.  Most of us have social media.  Photography is a growing art form everywhere because of its accessibility.  I took an AP 2D class in high school and it completely opened my eyes to the lens.  Not the physical lens on the camera, but the lens of perception.  Art can be perceived in a million TRILLION different ways because we all have our opinions.  Lord knows we all have our own opinions.  Perception is how you see it, so what I see is not what you see.  That is what i love about the arts–there is no definitive answer no matter how hard someone tries to tell you otherwise.  Entitlement is often connoted with negative feelings, but everyone is entitled to their opinions.  My lens for my portfolio for the class dealt with self-portraits, which to many seemed glaringly vain, but to me felt most at home.  Self discovery through the arts…I didn’t even question it.  My lens transformed from a heavily coarsed idea of myself to the centered form of my being.  I mean it is about self discovery so I chose to portray myself from the beginning as hidden because I cared way too much how others thought of me.  I transformed to a vulnerable self where makeup was not an option and I was in my natural state.  To accept yourself, you have to be yourself.

Ever since I was a young kid, my parents would always tell me to never forget how important family is. To always remember that even if all else fails and you feel as though you’re all alone, your family will always be there for you. Now, as a young kid I took this saying for granted. Of course family is one of the most important aspects of life, who could ever think otherwise? Now that I’ve grown and have experienced more of what this world has to offer to me it seems as though my family told me that saying at a young age for a reason, almost to instill it within my being and everyday way of life. Because I have lived my entire life making my family a priority it is effortless for me to do so today. But the more people I meet, the more I realize that a strong, unified family isn’t as common as my young self had once imagined it to be. Rather, it is a blessing to have a family that is as close as I’d like to believe my family and I to be. They are one of my greatest motivations as they push me to always strive for greatness in anything that I do. I strive to not only succeed for myself, but more importantly the people who got me to where I am right now. The greatest factor in my success has come from my family and I can only repay them by showing them that all their hard work and dedication into me was to help me succeed like no other. I hope to display this success as a great student these next four years and that this hard work will lead to a life of prosperity, happiness, and love.

When I was younger, I would see college students in movies and think, “Wow they are pretty old, it is going to be forever until I become a college student.” Now here I am, one of those college students and I still can’t wrap my mind around that. My high school years seem to have flown by with the blink of an eye. I remember watching Ned’s Declassified School Survival Guide in middle school to prepare myself for what high school has to offer as if it was yesterday (it was nothing like the show sadly).

Many things have shaped who I am today. My family, friends, and jobs have all played a role in making me. I believe my family has taught me that I should get out there and do what feels like the impossible, meanwhile my friends have taught me that I should believe in myself. The jobs I’ve had, on the other hand, have shown me that through hard work, you can move up and get that promotion or get those around you to look up to you and go to you for advice.

As a college student, I have similar goals to my peers. I want to maintain a social life as well as a 4.0 GPA. I also want to figure out exactly what it is that I want to do in the future. Yes I have declared a major, but is it something I would love doing everyday? Is it what I thought it would be like, or is it something absolutely different? Will I wake up happy everyday and excited to go to work? These are all the things I hope to answer in my college years. I hope to make lots of connections and take up internships as a way of figuring myself out.

As for the first semester, I hope that I can maintain that beautiful 4.0 GPA (insert angels singing here) and make new connections. I also hope that I can achieve my small goal of moving out for college, even if it is just for the semester (fingers crossed). Besides all that, I just hope that I will be happy in this new environment. If I am happy then I think everything will fall into place just as it should.

To say that I simply wanted to repeat my first two years of high school is an understatement. It was in those two years, where I learned more of the path that I wanted to take in my future.

In my sophomore year of high school I had the opportunity to have leadership scheduled as a class. This class grew to be very important from the very start. It was this class that got me to become an active member in my school community, by helping, volunteering and attending at any event that I was needed at. It was also through those firsts days of leadership class that I grew my love for SING, which I did my last 3 years of high school, and was able to rediscover my passion for dance after a two year break.

My leadership class showed me all the joys and fun activities that my school had to offer outside the classroom. It made me realize I want to get involved and not just be that girl who practically speed walked everyday to the bus stop before other students got out of class. Being in leadership also showed me that in order to truly start to love where I am going to school. When you don’t attempt to be apart of your school community, you hate school even more you see school just as it is and miss out on many opportunities.

As a college student I would love to continue on the path of trying to find outside activities within the school to help make the school feel like a much better experience. That has always been my goal for a university to go and meet people who I would want to talk to after school ends and expand my horizon. My concerns, however, though I despite trying all these different activities and meeting people that I still won’t learn to love it here and that my feelings won’t change towards school.

My youth years consisted of going to school and playing soccer after. I would either play in my backyard with my dad or go to practice with my club team. It was pretty routine and I liked it. I lived out on Long Island in a town called Coram. I liked the friendly neighborhood and the diverse district. I started my high school career in Longwood and it was definitely different than Junior High. After a while though, I got used to it and I enjoyed it. I had my group of friends and I was playing soccer for the school. I was looking forward to sophomore year and playing on the varisty team. However, I never got to experience that. My parents pulled the rug out from under my feet before I even started doing my summer assignments for the fall.

That summer my parents bought a tiny house, which we ended up tearing down and rebuilding, in Smithtown, a town 30 minutes west of my old house. I told my parents that I refused to move but in the end I didn’t have much say in the decision. At first I didn’t accept the change and was miserable at my new school. However, slowly I saw that this move wasn’t so bad. I was offered one of the best soccer programs on the island as well as one of the best academic programs. I was becoming alot more social than in my old school and I was meeting a lot more people. I even met an amazing girl which I’m still with to this day.

Change can be hard at first but if you’re brave enough to accept it can often be good. You should always explore your options because there is a lot out there that you don’t know about. This is exactly what I expect to do at Baruch and in the city. I want to excel in my studies but at the same time I want to maintain a social life, explore the city and take advantage of all it has to offer as well as keeping up with soccer of course.

I remember so vividly my first day of kindergarten- posing for pictures, riding the school bus for the first time, and lining up with the other students in my class. Most of all, I remember feeling excited. Similarly, each day in which I travel to Baruch is a vivid, exhilarating experience for me; the sight of the awesome Manhattan skyline never fails to take my breath away.

I do not merely let observations and experiences reveal their meaning to me, but I also seek to search for their meaning myself. My inquisitive mind, my unfettered thoughts, my compassionate heart, and my ambitious soul define my character and have been inspired and strengthened by my family, as well as my home. My parents have taught me the power and hence importance of confidence in one’s self and unwavering perseverance. My younger brother has reinforced my work ethic with his own dedication to schoolwork, his passion for learning, and his focus and drive for achieving a goal. My safe, secure, and tranquil home with its beautiful yard of trees and flowers has allowed me to appreciate and love even the smallest, simplest things in life.

My parents have shaped my values for and practices of integrity and hard work, which in turn have shaped my attitude toward education. My drive to excel in school reflects how I strive to be the best I can be. My passion for learning not only satiates my desire for knowledge but also reflects my gratitude for having the privilege to acquire knowledge.

As a Baruch Scholar and as a college student in the greatest city in Earth, I am unbounded in both the domain of exploration and the range of experience. I inevitably await the myriad of opportunities and the unbridled potential for individual growth.