Jennifer Borrero

What is the American Dream? Can I achieve it? Am I worthy of it? Does the American Dream even exist? These questions are what both haunted and inspired Jennifer for years to seek a deeper meaning. The only person in her family born in the US, she always felt the pressure to succeed in America, while also living up to the expectation of being a woman in a traditional Mexican family.

In this keynote program, Jennifer Borrero shares her personal journey of navigating the pressure to be perfect while striving to make her Hispanic family proud. She recalls stories of struggling to make ends meet while sending money back to her family, insights of feeling overwhelmed and alone in college, and how she turned that pressure and guilt into a career filled with purpose. Through her college journey, Jennifer harnesses her leadership style in male-dominated spaces while staying true to her roots.

This program is specifically designed to empower college students seeking to strike a balance between their academic pursuits and cultural expectations, students who may feel that they are being pulled in opposite directions and are unsure of who they are at their core.

A TRIO college graduate and now a UN Ambassador, Jennifer plants a seed of courage in each student. Students will leave with the tools to turn pressure into power, and understand how to use the unique challenges faced by first-generation college students to develop practices that will cultivate self-compassion.

Learning Outcomes

As a result of attending the program, students will learn:

• How to use societal and cultural expectations of perfection to build resilience and self-compassion
• How to maintain a strong connection to one’s roots and heritage, and strategies for integrating cultural values and traditions into the college experience
• How to find your leadership style as a woman identifying person
• How to create your own path by setting realistic goals and redefining success in their own terms
• How to seek mentorship and guidance from peers, professors and campus resources