Patricia Carlos

Student

“One of the main things MEChA has taught me is to become more aware of what’s around me and what works for our community and what doesn’t.”

Patricia Carlos was getting ready to say goodbye to SMC and hello to UC Davis where she will transfer to this fall. “I hope to major in Chicano Studies and in History,” she says, explaining that she wants a double major in order to gain a broader and more balanced understanding of America’s past. “What I’d like to do is to study the history of the U.S. and then, with my Chicana point of view, see through some of the myths created by the Eurocentric point of view. Then I’d like to come to the youth and tell them about what we’re taught and, if different, what it was really like.”

While pursuing her studies at SMC, Patricia has evolved into a dedicated activist, serving as president of MEChA during her final semester at the college. Whether raising awareness among fellow Latino students, writing a grant proposal to the City of Santa Monica for a cultural event or putting together SMC’s Cinco de Mayo celebration, Patricia takes her club involvement very seriously. “It’s been so enlightening,” she says. “I enjoy it very much, not just being president but being a Mechista at all. I feel it’s important to get our political message out there and make more of our youth aware of the opportunities they have and also of the obstacles they need to overcome.”

Patricia, whose future plans include law school followed by a career as either an immigration attorney or civil rights lawyer, credits history professor Mike Soldatenko with helping her to focus her commitment on Chicano causes. “Overall, SMC has been an encouraging place,” she says. “It’s as good an institution as any university around here.”

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