A Message from LASO's New Secretary

HI! My name is Ashley Oviedo and I am a sophomore majoring in broadcast journalism and minoring in Spanish. I am originally from The Bronx, New York. I am Puerto Rican and was raised in an English speaking household. Although both of my parents are fluent in Spanish they did not teach me tha lnaguage since they thought it would interfere with me learning English. Because I was not taught to speak Spanish as a child I would often feel ashamed and not feel like a true Latina. I felt that I was missing out on a big part of my heritage. Other Latinos would often judge me and ask me why I do not speak Spanish. At first I didn’t think learning to speak Spanish was a big deal since both of my parents spoke to me in English. But as I got older

I realized that I should take the opportunity to learn it. In high school I took Spanish classes all th way up till AP Spanish. I had to learn the language from scratch. I wanted to become fluent in the language. This particularly influenced me to choose a minor in Spanish.

Then in college I joined LASO! Being involved with LASO has truly been amazing thus far. I met people who understand my culture. At first I was hesitant to join since I thought I would be judged for not being fluent in Spanish. However, it was nothing like I imagined. It was better. This is a place to appreciate Latino culture and to meet all sorts of people. I am more than excited to serve as LASO's secretary this semester!

- Ashley Oviedo

Secretary, Latino and American Student Organization