Reyna Lopez Garcia holding a Harvard pennant

Reyna Lopez Garcia

/ Immigrant Success Stories / By

Reyna Lopez Garcia, Bilingual First Generation to College Student, Harvard University-Class of 2025

Written by Kristina (Tina) M. Howlett, Ph.D.
Community Projects Coordinator/College Advisor, Rogers Honors Academy, Rogers Public Schools, Rogers, Arkansas

Reyna Lopez Garcia, Rogers Honors Academy-Rogers Heritage High School, Rogers, Arkansas, Class of 2021, excels academically with a GPA of 4.3. Reyna is engaged in her home, school, and greater community. At home, Reyna helps with household bills, interprets for her family and cares for her brother, teaching him English. At school, Reyna is a member of the Spanish and National Honor Societies, Mu Alpha Theta, and LULAC. After school, Reyna works as a Pre-School Administrative Assistant at Kumon Math and Reading Center of Bentonville helping children develop a strong academic foundation.

Utilizing her passions for learning and helping others, Reyna initiated a Community Service Project, the Rogers Heritage High School ESOL Support Club, a peer tutoring program designed to help newcomers and other English Learners (ELs). This year, Reyna expanded the club which now includes 50 students participating in weekly tutoring sessions. Reyna stated, “I remember my challenges learning English when I came to the U.S. from Mexico at age 12. I used to be outgoing in my home country, but I suddenly became shy because I did not have anyone to help me practice English. I created the club because it’s important to give English learners the confidence to learn, converse in a new language, and make friends. It makes me feel satisfied to see our ESOL students practicing with their peers. As the founder of the ESOL Support Club, I am confident to say that our ELs feel included in the school community.”

Reyna, a first generation to college student, was accepted to 18 U.S. colleges, including top schools such as USC, UPenn, Rice, and Duke, with awards totaling over $3 million. Reyna decided to attend Harvard University, her dream school, and she plans to pursue a degree in International Relations and Latin American Studies, work in New York City, and travel the world.

Do you know a similar story of an immigrant language learner? Contact us to share it.

Related Posts

Help Grow the Virtual Museum

Virtual

Are you interested in creating an educational experience for visitors to the Virtual National Museum of Language? Do you have digital design skills? Can you…

In Memoriam of Jack D. Jones

Blog

Former National Museum of Language Vice-President Jack D. Jones, 89, passed away on March 27, 2015. He died of a stroke in Asheville, NC where he…

Why is There a Flag for Languages?

Blog

Gregory J. Nedved, an award-winning Defense Department historian and Museum trustee, writes this article on the value and meaning of flags. Debra Kieft and the International…

Demo Title

Demo Description

My first Popup

This will close in 20 seconds

Fanni is Radnóti's wife
Located near the Tang capital city of Chang’an, site of the modern city of Xi’an in Shaanxi province, in central China.
Soldiers of that time commonly wore a white head cloth, similar to what is still worn by some peasants in China today.  The implication is that the conscripts were so young that they didn’t know how to wrap their head cloths, and needed help from elders.
Before China’s unification under the Qin dynasty in 221 B.C. there were several competing smaller kingdoms.  Han and Qin were two of these kingdoms. Han was located east of famous mountain passes that separated that area from the power base of the Qin dynasty, with its capital in Chang’an. The Qin dynasty itself only lasted about 15 years after unification due to its draconian rule, but soldiers under Qin rule retained a reputation as strong fighters.
The area of Guanxi, meaning “west of the passes”, refers to the area around the capital city of Chang’an.
This is an alternative name for a province in western China, now known as Qinghai, which literally means “blue sea”.  Kokonor Lake, located in Qinghai, is the largest saline lake in China.  
Before China’s unification under the Qin dynasty in 221 B.C. there were several competing smaller kingdoms.  Han and Qin were two of these kingdoms. Han was located east of famous mountain passes that separated that area from the power base of the Qin dynasty, with its capital in Chang’an. The Qin dynasty itself only lasted about 15 years after unification due to its draconian rule, but soldiers under Qin rule retained a reputation as strong fighters.
Oulart Hollow was the site of a famous victory of the Irish rebels over British troops, which took place on May 27, 1798. The rebels killed nearly all the British attackers in this battle. (Source: Maxwell, W. H. History of the Irish Rebellion in 1798. H. H. Bohn, London 1854, pp 92-93, at archive.org)
The phrase "United Men" is elaborated upon in the Notes section below.

Ghetto

An Italian word meaning “foundry.” It originally referred to a part of the city of Venice where the Jews of that city were forced to live; the area was called “the ghetto” because there was a foundry nearby. The term eventually came to refer to any part of a city in which a minority group is forced to live as a result of social, legal, or economic pressure. Because of the restrictions placed upon them, ghetto residents are often impoverished.

"You’re five nine, I am do-uble two"

A reference to the year 1959 and the year 2020.

"The Currency"

Meaning US dollars - this is drawing attention to the fact that Cuba is effectively dollarized.

"Sixty years with the dom-ino stuck"

This sentence is a reference to the Cold War notion that countries would turn Communist one after the other - like dominos. Cuba was the first domino, but it got stuck - no one else followed through into communism.

رحلنا

رحلنا, or "rahalna," means "we have left."

Habibi

Habibi means "my love."

Ra7eel

Ra7eel, or "raheel," means "departure."

3awda

3awda, or "awda," means "returning."

أهلاً

أهلاً, or "ahalan," means "welcome."

a5 ya baba

a5 ya baba, pronounced "akh ya baba," means "Oh my father."

golpe

Treece translates "golpe" as "beating", which is correct, however misses the secondary meaning of the word: "coup".

Carlos

The “Carlos” referred to in the poem is most likely Carlos Bolsonaro, a politician from Rio de Janeiro and the second son of Jair Bolsonaro, Brazil’s current president. His and his father’s involvement in Marielle’s murder has been questioned and investigated.