I am a doctoral student in the department of Anthropology at UCLA under the mentorship of Dr. Thomas Weisner. I received my B.A. in Ethnic Studies and Spanish Language & Literature from UC Berkeley and my M.A. in Latin American Studies from UCLA. For the past four years I have been part of a mixed-methods study that looks at the cultural values and practices of familism (family assistance, obligation, cohesion, and support) in Mexican-origin families in Los Angeles (La Vida Diaria de Familias en Los Ángeles, PI: Andrew Fuligni; Co-PI: Thomas Weisner; Co-PI: Nancy Gonzales). My dissertation continues my work with the La Vida study, looking at the implications of plural family circumstances (e.g., mixed-status siblings, deported relatives, DACA recipient youth) on youth’s experiences of familism and feelings of gratitude towards family to contribute to our understanding of pathways that promote positive development for Mexican-origin youth. The generous support from the FPR-UCLA CBDMH Summer Fieldwork & Training Program offered me the incredible opportunity to enrich my dissertation project, adding a subsample of relatives “left behind” in Mexico, and to learn from Dr. Steven López about mental illness and effective strategies to address disparities in mental health care for Latinos.
