Meet Maritza Sanchez
Maritza Sanchez has made purposeful choices in her college career as a first-generation student at Boise State. She chose the field of nursing so she can help rural and low-income communities focus on better health outcomes, and is involved on campus in the TRIO program as a mentor to other first-generation students navigating college. For Sanchez, her experience as a student is about helping others and lifting up underrepresented students to help them be both visible and successful.
Maritza Sanchez loves the nursing field. Her passion for nursing began in high school, when she volunteered at a local hospital. After she graduates in December 2020 with her bachelor’s degree in nursing, she plans on becoming a family nurse practitioner so she can go back to the rural community she grew up in and help people learn about preventative health.
Sanchez entered college at Boise State with the support of the College Assistance Migrant Program (CAMP). When it came time to apply to the nursing program her second year, Sanchez’ advisors in the TRIO Rising Scholars program helped her navigate the process. Sanchez was accepted, but her journey to that point was not without doubt. “Many people told me that students like me don’t go into nursing,” said Sanchez. “I had to find people (on campus) that could see my potential and help support me.”
As a nursing student, Sanchez hopes to help diversify representation in the nursing field. She points out there is often a perception in communities where first-generation students grow up, that people from their background don’t go into professions like nursing.
Disproving that perception is something Sanchez is also passionate about. She volunteers regularly at her high school in Mountain Home, where as a student she started a chapter of Future Hispanic Leaders of America. Sanchez mentors students like herself, serving as a role model to show high schoolers that they can go on to college and become successful professionals as well.
Because of her experiences and success in college, Sanchez has learned to appreciate the opportunities she’s had. “I’ve learned to appreciate and take advantage of the opportunities my parents didn’t have,” she said.
November 4th – 8th is First-Generation Student week. The Center for Multicultural Educational Opportunities, housed in the College of Education, includes a variety of programs that support first-generation college students.
Center for Multicultural Educational Opportunities
-By Carrie Quinney