Over posole, ceviche and handfuls of tortilla chips, parents of Cal State Fullerton students chatted in Spanish with one another, too anxious to quite enjoy the moment.

The potluck dinner in May brought them together so Julián Jefferies, assistant professor of literacy and reading education, could allay their fears. Their children were about to embark on a 3,300-mile trip – for some the first time they had been out of California or on an airplane.

A few weeks later, those students were sitting, blindfolded, around a bonfire at 4:30 a.m. on a small island in Puerto Rico as the sun rose and a handful of wild horses walked toward them along the beach.

Their parents could hardly have imagined.

“I warned the parents and the students they were going to come back and they were going to change,” said Miguel Martinez, college career specialist for the College of Education, who accompanied the students, all the first in their families to attend college.

The 15 students returned home with new inspiration, motivation and career goals. Some want to change their career focus; others had a new interest in applying to graduate school. And with the exception of one visit to the hospital, all went smoothly.

The two-week trip by the Literacy Education for Social Change class has become an annual tradition for Jefferies, a strong believer in the power of experiential learning – getting out of the classroom to learn by doing. He took the class to Vieques, an impoverished, rural island where the U.S. Navy conducted bombing and other military exercises for 60 years.

The class members helped establish a community farm, cleaned archives, worked at a radio station and conducted surveys of island residents. Their experience also included professional and personal development, highlighted by a short lecture by Martinez calling the students fakes.

“That was one of the highlights of the trip, when Miguel called them fakes,” said Jefferies.

But that’s putting the cart before the wild horses.

Before the class set foot in Puerto Rico, the students had to learn to budget and to raise money – selling tacos at churches, setting up GoFundMe accounts – to supplement funding from the university’s Center for Internships and Community Engagement and the College of Education.

But an equally tough task was winning over the parents, who worry about a child, especially a daughter, traveling alone. In some cases, the student is a caregiver for siblings or works to help pay the rent or phone bill, making a two-week absence a hardship. Parents often have trouble understanding why their child needs to leave campus to learn. That’s why Jefferies and Martinez hold the potluck.

“For our culture, food is family,” Martinez said.

Geography major Kevin Goxcon brought his mother and sister to the potluck.

“I study the world but yet I haven’t actually explored,” he said. “I’m eager to actually feel the place.”

His mother, Ereida, said she was glad Kevin would acquire more knowledge so he can get ahead and had faith that everything would be all right.

Gerardo Marquez said he was glad his daughter, Otilia, was getting “out of her cubicle” to get to know the world, as it shrinks and integrates culturally.

“So I’m sort of pushing her,” he said.

For their part, the students were so busy on the trip they barely had time to miss their families, Jefferies said. Some worked on an organic farm – weeding, sowing and harvesting – as part of a nonprofit’s efforts to grow more produce on the island. The decades that the Navy used the island for military exercises left it with little indigenous agriculture; produce must be imported from China via Florida, taking so long that much of it ends up decaying, and expensive, by the time it reaches Vieques.

“A lot of our students are from low-income communities in Santa Ana, Anaheim or Fullerton,” Jefferies said. Issues of access to healthy food are not just found in Puerto Rico. Many minority communities in Orange County have fewer options to buy fresh fruit and must pay more for it than other communities, he pointed out.

Students especially responded to a panel of local women activists who protested against the Navy, and the contamination it left behind, or in favor of more health care on the island. Studies have shown rates of cancer, diabetes and cardiovascular disease on Vieques sharply higher than elsewhere in Puerto Rico.

When one student experienced an allergic reaction and needed medical care, the only option on the 9,300-population island was a run-down clinic with one doctor and three nurses.

“I left the hospital worried for Viequenses,” said Estefania Gutierrez-Guerrero, a senior majoring in human services.

The class landed in Puerto Rico after two months of student protests at the University of Puerto Rico over proposed budget cuts. Three leaders of the student strike stayed with the CSUF group for two days.

“They were very impressed by the fact that students had basically closed the university for two months in protest,” Jefferies said.

Another timely event was the June 11 referendum on Puerto Rico’s statehood, which passed overwhelmingly.  The students collaborated with a UPR professor to conduct exit interviews with about 300 people early that morning.

The activities and speakers opened the students’ eyes to social justice work, Jefferies said.

“When I think about the work we do there, I don’t know that we’re changing that much,” he said. “The big change is the change in the students. I don’t pretend to go there and improve the vast inequalities that there are there. We can learn from what their struggle is and get motivated to work for social justice.”

Last year, one student realized that Vieques, with few jobs or opportunities and little to do but cruise up and down a one-block stretch, is similar to his hometown of Santa Ana, Martinez said. Surrounded by affluence, Santa Ana’s just a different kind of island.

“They see the Disneyland fireworks, but it’s another world.”

While working on the farm in Vieques, some students learned there is a community garden in Santa Ana, inspiring them to volunteer in their own communities.

Along with such discoveries came more personal ones, Jefferies said. He brings Martinez along on his trips to continue professional development lessons he incorporates into his CSUF classes.

“We’re working on them as professionals, but a lot of it is personal,” Jefferies said. “They don’t believe in themselves, don’t think they can do it or have some kind of limitation.” He says a lot of the young women aren’t used to speaking up in class, even though their writing shows they have a lot to say. Some students hide their knowledge at the dinner table because they don’t want to be accused of being a know-it-all among less-educated family members.

To address that, Martinez woke up the students at 4:30 a.m. one day and took them to the beach, where Jefferies had started a bonfire. Martinez asked them to write down on a cloth strip three obstacles holding them back. They put the cloth around their shoulders to feel the burden of that limitation, then blindfolded themselves with it to symbolize how it blinds them. Then they threw the cloths into the fire.

Then, as the sun came up, a family of horses came walking up the beach.

“They asked, ‘Did you do this?’” said Martinez. “I so wanted to say yes. It was just magic.”

While that morning was cathartic for many of the students, it was another session with Martinez that provided the jolt many needed to commit to real change. After the UPR students spoke about their protest, showing how much they are invested in their college, Martinez challenged the CSUF students to really commit to being a college student, saying they were just pretending.

“It’s almost like it’s become college is their hobby. It’s not who they are,” Martinez said. They wear a Cal State Fullerton T-shirt, but it’s like a costume. As CSUF has grown as a commuter school, a lot of students don’t stick around after class, apply for jobs on campus or go to baseball games, he said. Instead they have a part-time job and do their classwork at home.

“They’ll go to parties and say, ‘Look, I’m at Fullerton. I’m at university.’ It gives them a ranking in their communities, in their barrios, with their friends,” he said. “What are you really doing with this experience? A lot of them hadn’t been doing what they should.”

Some put off getting involved, saying, “Let me get my degree first and then I’ll be active and contribute.”

He called them fakes.

“I hope I didn’t go overboard,” said Martinez, who added that he wants them to see they are leaders in their community.

“I like Miguel because he’s not as polite as I am,” Jefferies said. “He told them what they needed to hear.” The reflections the students wrote after they returned (see accompanying story) bear out Jefferies’ hunch. He said many included statements along the lines of: “I was called a fake. Miguel was right.”

As the students were called out for their level of commitment, they also received a dose of ethnic pride as they spent most of the trip conversing only in Spanish and living and working among the Puerto Rican people.

“Our students have one foot in two worlds,” Jefferies said. “They grew up in the United States, but they are also Latin American, Mexican. Salvadoran. Going to Puerto Rico helps them to be proud of being Latin Americans. They don’t get that many messages that speaking Spanish and being Mexican is a good thing – from media or school,” something Martinez calls “immigrant stress.”

“I think that’s what I’m most proud of,” Jefferies added. “We need more bilingual, bicultural, global-minded people.”

In the students’ own words

Excerpts from reflections the students wrote upon return and from interviews:

Kevin Goxcon: This place was magical. The part of the fort we used as a classroom had the most amazing view. The air that reached the top of this hill was unique to anything I have ever felt. Unlike the winds back home that quickly caress and leave, these winds were strong and lingered as they embraced me in their strong arms. They welcomed me to their island. They brought with them the smell of salts from the sea, the moisture from the land, the sounds of faraway dogs and roosters. …

I have this newfound motivation to better myself in order to help others that are facing the same challenges as me. There might be a high school student right now who thinks they cannot afford to go to college or they don’t have what it takes. Perhaps there is a community college student somewhere right now wondering if transferring to a four-year institution is something they can achieve. There might be several students receiving their bachelor’s degree who are not pursuing graduate school due to lack of information or support. I was once in all of those situations. I need to be ready for when I meet these students in the future.

Otilia Marquez: One thing I quickly learned about Vieques, Puerto Rico, is that they are a collectivistic culture! Unselfish and willing to help the community, unite as one, and stand up for what they believe in! They don’t have much to offer to anyone, neither to themselves, materialistic-wise, however, they have it all if they stick together! The island has suffered enough, both individually and as a whole, yet they love freely, speak freely, and always find a way to make a difference.

Estefania Gutierrez-Guerrero: One of the most memorable experiences of the trip was hearing the women of Vieques speak about their contributions to their island. … I had always been too scared to stand up and fight for what I think was right. … After hearing the panelists speak about their battles, I realized that activism is what I want to devote my life to. …

A woman who helped me understand the importance of women empowerment was Nilda. … She was part of the protests to remove the Navy, and she continues to fight for Vieques. Something she said that made an impact on me was that protesting can be done through different ways. For example, every morning she would put on a shirt of a certain color and then walk around the plaza. This act of protest is still powerful and meaningful even if it is not with a big group of people. What I understood by that is that you must stand up by yourself, and the right people will join you.

Jason Miramontes: To call myself a student after meeting the students of Vieques would be a lie. … Seeing to what lengths the students were willing to go to just be heard was awe inspiring. Also all the difficulty they had to overcome, the fear that they have during protesting for themselves and their families was impactful. They would tell us how there were government types standing around with cameras ready to take pictures of people to keep an eye on them and make a folder on them. … Seeing what a formidable force people my age in similar circumstances can be was really motivational. I see them and I think to myself “I can do that.” …

My culture isn’t bad! I always thought it was lesser than American, always scared to accept it as part of me but now I can say I am a PROUD CHICANO. I have a better picture of who I am and how I operate and can use that to push myself more. My identity is starting to cement and I can say I am proud of who I am now, knowing I can help make a difference in other people’s lives. I love my culture now and I am actively studying it, I want to know everything, especially the history and dancing … still don’t like a lot of the music though.

Cesar Lopez: Those feelings, those emotions that I had were pretty much based on my rough past. From age 13 until 16, I used to be gang-affiliated. It’s true what classmates, professors told me. You can’t let your past define you now because you are a completely different person. …  From now on I’m going to try to identify myself as who I am right now and on the hard work and what I’ve accomplished. …

Originally I wanted to be a social worker and pursue my master’s in education. But then Miguel said, “I picture you teaching junior high in Santa Ana.” Everyone else said they could picture that: “You’re a big dude, sometimes intimidating. But inside you’re like a teddy bear.” There are not that many male, of color, teachers. Maybe I should start teaching.

Mayra Mendoza: There’s a solidarity that the Vieques people have. It doesn’t matter if you are from Vieques. As long as you want to help the community, they’re willing to help you help them.

Anthony Flores: I learned so much from everyone out there. I would share something on Facebook. I wanted things to be known. Now, I don’t just want to sit back and share it on the internet. Now I want to know what can I do to help.

Vanessa Beltran: I would like to bring my experiences and what I learned over there and be able to teach them to my family and friends and my community here, to stand up for what we want.

Maricela Gonzalez: I was interested to see a body of students actually take action, go to this assembly, voice their opinions and their rhetoric. I haven’t dealt with situations of that magnitude. It’s their way of voicing out their way of what they want for their university. It was really good to see.

What’s next?

To tap the desire for change that the trip often elicits, CSUF career specialist Miguel Martinez conducts career exploration workshops with the students. He has them write a statement of purpose  to start reflecting not just on what they’re doing but on what they’re not doing, and administers a RIASEC test, which matches six personality types (realistic, investigative, artistic, social, enterprising and conventional) to occupations, then helps them interpret the results.

Some students were disappointed, said Julián Jefferies, assistant professor of literacy and reading education. They had trouble imagining themselves in the careers the test guided them toward. But it turns out they didn’t know much about many of those careers, he said.

For example, one student who is good with money was annoyed when she was matched with financial jobs. She said she didn’t want to work in a bank; she wanted to help people. But when she was told she could conduct financial literacy workshops for people who get into debt and don’t know why, something clicked. Since she returned home, she got her resume together to apply for those kind of jobs.

“Her parents aren’t professionals,” Jefferies said. “Where is she going to hear: ‘You could be a loan officer’”?

Many students on the trip typically start thinking about graduate school for the first time, something they then have to explain to parents who thought it was enough to put their child through college.

“It changes you,” Martinez said. “For some of them, you have to start all over. There’s a certain amount of confidence when you think you know what you want vs. when you really know but have to start over.”

Jefferies expects many students will seek out the Career Center now that they’ve made that connection with Martinez. They came back hungry, wanting to develop an action plan for grad school, Martinez said.

Jefferies also hopes students will stay connected with the CSUF faculty and staff on the trip – who shared their stories of the struggles that brought them to where they are today – and seek out office hours and group events. Some have become his research assistants.

“They know they can get a letter of recommendation from me,” he said. “I told them: ‘I was there with you for two weeks, so I know you’re not crazy. I know you very well. When mosquitoes are biting you when it’s hot, you do hard work. I can give a good recommendation.’”