USD Magazine, Fall 2004

Just Three Questions: Q: Who is your favorite musician? A: Ricardo Arjona.

Hometown: Laguna Hills,

Q: Who is your favorite idol? A: Sor Juana Inez de la Cruz. She's a Mexican nun and poet. Q: What is it you most dislike? A: People who judge you without knowing you. -1 of strength and ironclad determination, traits that have served her well for her first 18 years. Born in the small town of Ahualulco, outside of Guadalajara in the state of Jalisco, Mexico, Gonzalez never thought she'd attend university due to economic hardship in her family. Even so, when her father - who'd been working north of the border for years - decided to move the family to Laguna Hills six years ago, Gonzalez wasn't initially thrilled. ''At first I was mad chat they didn't ask me if I wanted to come here," she recalls. "I didn't know any English at all, and it was hard." But as her current fluency attests, she picked up English quickly. By the time she was a freshman in high school, she was a regular in her guidance counselor's office and soon became active in a variety of activities: Gonzalez was a member of the Spanish club, the Key Club, the National Honor Society and the California Scholarship Federation. Ir's not surprising that the counselor urged Gonzalez to go to college. When a USD scholarshjp opportunity crossed the woman's desk, she immediately thought of Gonzalez and pushed her to apply. "I was so happy when I got it," Gonzalez recalls, flashing one of her rare, incandescent smiles. "I would get really lost in a larger school, so USD is perfect for me." To pay for her education, she applied for, and received, three other scholarships - along with a Cal Grant. She also got a part-time job in Cop ley Library. Her challenges and life experiences have helped Gonzalez hone in on her goals: Ultimately, she wants to teach elementary school in a bilingual setting. "Ir inspires me to see immigrants looking for a better life," she says. Perhaps the hardest thing about leaving home for college is the lack of daily proximity to her family; she's especially worried about her two little brothers, ages 9 and 12. "I guess they'll just have to learn to do their homework on their own," she says ruefully. "Without me there to nag them, they'll have to. " here's a solemnity about Carmen Gonzalez that makes her sudden smile al] the more precious. Though diminutive, she projects both a sense

Calif. (via Ahualulco, Mexico).

Siblings: Two younger brothers,

three older sisters.

Pet: One (nameless) parakeet.

Major: Liberal Arts.

Residence hall:

Founders Hall.

Fa ll courses: Intro to

Psychology, College Algebra,

Co llege Writing, Music

Composition, World History.

Guilty pleasure:

Chocolate.

Can't live without:

"My family and my music."

One-liner: "If you do

things wro ng, you have to

do them more than once. "

Say what? "My Dad

says it all the time. "

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FALL 2004