With little representation herself, Cinthya is paving the way for Future Latina journalists
- La Voz Latina
- May 9
- 2 min read
Escrito por: Milvian Gonzalez 🇬🇹 🇧🇿
As Cinthya Roque-Blanco nears the end of her time at UMD, she reflects on her unique experiences as a Latina and first-generation college student.
Raised in North Carolina before moving to Maryland at age 12, Roque-Blanco graduated high school during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic and attended Montgomery College. While a student there, mentors encouraged her to pursue a journalism degree.
Transferring to the University of Maryland was a significant shift, porque fue su primera vez yendo a la universidad en persona.
As a first-generation college student, Roque-Blanco juggled school and work as a waitress, leaving little time for extracurricular activities. “I always wish I was more involved in things,” she shared.
Navigating college life without a familiar support system made it challenging for Roque-Blanco to connect with her peers, particularly in the school of journalism, where the student body is predominantly white.
“I’m constantly comparing myself to them as much as I don’t want to compare myself to them, right? And I just feel like I have to catch my grammar up to par. I have to catch my AP style up to par,” she said. “English is already my second language, and so I’m just fighting so much harder to be at the same place where everyone’s already at.”
Despite feeling disconnected with some classmates at the journalism school, Roque-Blanco met Rafael Rodriguez, un artista que es Salvadoreño como ella, while searching for an interview subject for a videography class project.
Roque-Blanco and Rodríguez immediately hit it off, y dice que aprecia mucho en tener la oportunidad de conocerlo, porque ahora son buenos amigos.
El tiempo de Roque-Blanco en la Universidad de Maryland también le dio la oportunidad de reconectar con su idioma materno cuando tomó clases de español.
“I don’t want to lose that part of myself. I feel like, as a teenager, I definitely resented speaking Spanish just because of the way it was viewed at the time, and I didn’t practice it as much. But now I’m 22, so I’m trying to connect with that part of myself,” she said.
As her time at UMD concludes, Roque-Blanco says some of her biggest support systems during this period of her life have been her girlfriend, Emily, and her best friend, Onna, who were always there for her emotionally, to lend a hand, or to simply listen to her.
“Ánimo que tu puedes hija.” - Alejandro Roque
Comments