Getting to Know You: Hesmirr Mata
Hesmirr Mata – Secondary Education Certificate, Human Development
Year in school: Senior
Hometown: Mabton, WA
What are you studying?
I am studying Family Consumer Science with a focus on adolescent development. My bachelor’s degree will be in Human Development!
Why are you studying this? What do you hope to do with this after you graduate?
I am studying this because my FCS (family consumer science) teachers really inspired me and had me interested in the content area. I had never really considered the idea of college, but these lovely women convinced me that I could help others with my leadership and skills. I hope to become a high school or middle school FCS teacher. I will teach and (hopefully) inspire students who were like me!
Why did you choose WSU?
WSU and CWU were the only colleges at the time that offered an FCS pathway. WSU was the best choice because of the small major size and ability to have a closer degree experience with my advisor Debbie Handy!
What’s been your favorite part of the WSU experience thus far?
I have really enjoyed the classes but meeting other teachers and building close relationships with them has been really fun! WSU has given me a gateway to meet so many cool, genuine, and amazing people. Overall, I felt like I have been able to express myself and grow exponentially within my college years. WSU has given me memories for a lifetime.
What’s been the biggest challenge so far?
The biggest challenge for me was having to juggle school on top of a full-time job and supporting my family. I am a first-generation student and I feel like not many people understand the struggle that comes from being first-generation and low income. It is such a privilege to be able to take out loans or to have your tuition paid for. It has been a long and hard journey for me. I am really proud of myself for how far I have come and all the things I have achieved in the last four years.
As a college, we’re starting to focus more on our people being agents of change. What makes you an agent of change?
I think I am an agent of change because I have faced so many adversities and yet I still am so focused on improving the education and lives of young adults. I feel like it is so important to be a positive impact on teens. Building a sense of trust and community goes a long way in benefiting students and their families. I want to be the educator that they look up to and count on. I am very confident in my abilities to improve and build leadership in students. Not only leadership, but empathy, resilience, motivation, and participation. Being a role model to young adults was never something I saw in my future, but it is something I want to overachieve in. Being conscious of my actions and impacts on students is major to me. Overall, I want to be enhancing quality learning, working for the benefit of the whole community, learning on the go, and improving and maintaining student wellbeing.
Favorites
Food: Asian or Mexican food really hits the spot
Restaurant in Pullman: Popos, El Chaparrito, and Realitea
Book: The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky
Band: Men I trust, The Marias, Paramore, System of A Down, and Rage Against the Machine
Movie: I’m a huge horror fan! Suspiria (1977,2018), The Decent, Hereditary, Anything 80s horror (Friday the 13th, Nightmare on Elm St, Evil Dead, etc.)
TV show: Courage the Cowardly Dog
Coug sport: Women’s basketball
Vacation spot: The Gorge