Elizabeth Cortes This is Me

Education

 Web References

1. 1. Graduation 2002: Language, motivation key to Immokalee senior's success

   www.naplesnews.com/02/05/naple - [Cached]

   Published on: 5/24/2002   Last Visited: 5/24/2002

   Elizabeth Cortes, 18, first came to the United States when she was 13, not speaking English. Cortes will graduate from Immokalee High School in the top 1 percent of her class, after which she will go to Dartmouth. She has received a full scholarship. Erik Kellar/Staff
   
   "When I learned English, I enjoyed the success. I got a taste of it and I liked it." said Cortes, 18.
   
   With a 4.45 grade point average, Cortes is in the top 1 percent of her senior class. She's received scholarships, including a full paid tuition to Dartmouth, worth about $160,000 over four years.
   
   A self-professed math wizard, Cortes plans to major in economics and earn an MBA. Her goal is to work in international business as a certified public accountant.
   
   ...
   Cash was there when Cortes began middle school and only spoke Spanish.
   ...
   Cortes left her small-town roots in her native Oaxaca five years ago to reunite with her mother who was already living in the United States.
   
   AT A GLANCE
   
   Immokalee High School
   
   Class size: 215
   
   ...
   A trip from Mexico that usually takes a few hours took nearly a month for Cortes. She said she entered the country illegally, using an alias. Cortes' first glimpse into American culture came when she arrived in Los Angeles. Her mother paid a coyote, the street name used to describe a smuggler of human beings, to sneak Cortes into the United States.
   
   "When I got to Los Angeles, I was amazed when I looked at the buildings and the traffic. I was scared and excited at the same time," Cortes said. "But I felt my life would change for the better."
   
   And it did.
   
   Teachers and counselors at Immokalee Middle told Cortes it would take her at least two years to learn English. Set on proving them wrong, Cortes focused on learning the language. She'd tune in to watch Sesame Street with her then- 3-year-old sister, Brenda. She would watch "Rugrats" and read children's books. One year after she arrived to the United States, Cortes was having conversations in English.
   
   "I knew the only way to get rid of my accent was to talk and talk," she said. "I wanted to learn English so bad and I did it."
   
   Before reaching U.S. soil, Cortes spent weeks traveling north from town to town in Mexico, as she made her way closer to the states. A month after leaving her homeland, Cortes arrived in Immokalee in August 1996.
   
   Cortes isn't a legal U.S. resident yet. She said she had filed a petition with Immigration and Naturalization Service last year to fix her residency status. But following the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, her paperwork with the federal agency took a back seat.
   
   While she waits for her resident alien card, Cortes said she'll enter Dartmouth as an international student.
   
   Sebastian Torres, principal at Immokalee High, said Cortes clearly stands out from among a lot of other hard-working and motivated students for a few reasons.

2. 2. Graduation 2002: Language, motivation key to Immokalee senior's success

   www.marcoeagle.com/02/05/naple - [Cached]

   Published on: 5/24/2002   Last Visited: 5/24/2002

   Elizabeth Cortes, 18, first came to the United States when she was 13, not speaking English. Cortes will graduate from Immokalee High School in the top 1 percent of her class, after which she will go to Dartmouth. She has received a full scholarship. Erik Kellar/Staff
   
   "When I learned English, I enjoyed the success. I got a taste of it and I liked it." said Cortes, 18.
   
   With a 4.45 grade point average, Cortes is in the top 1 percent of her senior class. She's received scholarships, including a full paid tuition to Dartmouth, worth about $160,000 over four years.
   
   A self-professed math wizard, Cortes plans to major in economics and earn an MBA. Her goal is to work in international business as a certified public accountant.
   
   ...
   Cash was there when Cortes began middle school and only spoke Spanish.
   ...
   Cortes left her small-town roots in her native Oaxaca five years ago to reunite with her mother who was already living in the United States.
   
   AT A GLANCE
   
   Immokalee High School
   
   Class size: 215
   
   ...
   A trip from Mexico that usually takes a few hours took nearly a month for Cortes. She said she entered the country illegally, using an alias. Cortes' first glimpse into American culture came when she arrived in Los Angeles. Her mother paid a coyote, the street name used to describe a smuggler of human beings, to sneak Cortes into the United States.
   
   "When I got to Los Angeles, I was amazed when I looked at the buildings and the traffic. I was scared and excited at the same time," Cortes said. "But I felt my life would change for the better."
   
   And it did.
   
   Teachers and counselors at Immokalee Middle told Cortes it would take her at least two years to learn English. Set on proving them wrong, Cortes focused on learning the language. She'd tune in to watch Sesame Street with her then- 3-year-old sister, Brenda. She would watch "Rugrats" and read children's books. One year after she arrived to the United States, Cortes was having conversations in English.
   
   "I knew the only way to get rid of my accent was to talk and talk," she said. "I wanted to learn English so bad and I did it."
   
   Before reaching U.S. soil, Cortes spent weeks traveling north from town to town in Mexico, as she made her way closer to the states. A month after leaving her homeland, Cortes arrived in Immokalee in August 1996.
   
   Cortes isn't a legal U.S. resident yet. She said she had filed a petition with Immigration and Naturalization Service last year to fix her residency status. But following the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, her paperwork with the federal agency took a back seat.
   
   While she waits for her resident alien card, Cortes said she'll enter Dartmouth as an international student.
   
   Sebastian Torres, principal at Immokalee High, said Cortes clearly stands out from among a lot of other hard-working and motivated students for a few reasons.