yli is My Story

Opinion: Students Need Support Online, Too

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yli is My Story

The truth is, learning online is simply not the same. Students, for the most part, have been trained to learn in a classroom. We are social learners: we learn best alongside our peers and have more organic conversations in person. While teachers may have employed online tools in their classes before, moving fully online deprives many students of their natural strengths in the classroom: their teachers and peers.

I Was a Calafia Fellow

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yli is My Story

I hope that readers understand that teenagers notice what is happening around us. We know the information we need is not given to us because older people decide on what to feed us as information. We have to advocate for our ourselves so our voices can be heard. 

We Can Be Both Beautiful & Smart

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yli is My Story

I like that I’m able to show people that there are different types of women. I play different kinds of roles – I’m a business owner, I like to dress up, I’m an activist and I love playing soccer, but I’m one person. I am Mexican, I wasn’t born here. I’m dark-skinned. I am a woman. I’m low-income. I’m breaking down prejudices on different sides, acting as a bridge between communities.

Celebrating My Crown with Confidence & Compliments

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yli is My Story

Hair has always been important to me. It’s how I express myself. Whether or not my hair is done can affect my attitude or how I approach certain situations. And if my hair is not done it can also be detrimental to my confidence. 

The Story You Don’t Hear

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yli is My Story

I want to change the narrative of what people think of me, so I wanted to tell a story about my life. I want to bring awareness to the southwest side of the city and to let people know that this community isn’t lazy and violent. We’re hopeful, we’re striving to live our lives, to have families, to settle down. We’re good people but because of what’s happening around us, it’s really challenging.