For graduate, ‘it’s never too late’ to pursue dream

Mother of three who put college on hold now graduating with Spanish degree

By California State University, Bakersfield

December 12^th, 2024

It was always Maria Vargas’ dream to go to college. As she reached her senior year of high school, she was taking advanced classes and had the goal of one day becoming a teacher herself.

Then life happened. Vargas became pregnant at age 17 and her plans were put on hold.

“It was really tough. I felt kind of lost for a little bit,” she said.

Vargas decided to focus her time and energy on raising her daughter, Lizette, with her now-husband, Erasmo Leon. After a few years, she thought about giving college a shot, but after she became pregnant with their second child, Vargas gave up on the idea.

“I figured it was too late to go back,” she said. “I felt like I didn’t have that motivation to go back to school. I just lost hope.”

It wasn’t until 2020, when Lizette was 11 years old and already starting to talk about college herself, that Vargas began to reconsider.

“She’s so mature for her age. She wants to be an engineer and work at NASA someday,” she said. “I always have encouraged her to go for her dreams. I wanted to serve as inspiration for her, so I decided to take my own advice and go back to school.”

Vargas was pregnant at the time with her third child, but she decided to go for it anyway. She graduated from Bakersfield College in 2022 with her associate degree in Spanish before transferring to California State University, Bakersfield that fall.

Now she is about to graduate this week with her bachelor’s in Spanish and has plans to pursue her master’s after taking a break.

“It’s exciting, but I’m a little nervous for the next chapter,” she said. “I’ve enjoyed being here, but I’m glad to be finally finishing. It just goes to show that it’s never too late.”

Leon said he and the rest of the family are proud of what Vargas has accomplished.

“I’m really happy for her. She’s been killing it,” he said. “To see how much dedication she’s been putting into her schooling, it’s insane. She has a lot to be proud of. She’s at the finish line.”

Going 'full-throttle'

Vargas was born in Mexico but lived most of her childhood in Arvin after moving there with her family when she was 4 years old. School was a challenge for her, as she originally only spoke Spanish and had difficulty communicating with her teachers and other students.

“My kindergarten teacher only spoke English, so it was hard to communicate with her, even to just go to the restroom,” she said. “I would ask my classmates who knew both Spanish and English to tell her for me. It was a little embarrassing.”

Luckily Vargas was a quick learner. By the time she started second grade, she was fluent enough in English that she could communicate what she needed. She was determined to speak English, as Vargas said she was sometimes mocked for speaking Spanish and discouraged from speaking it in class.

“I remember being teased when I wouldn’t know something or said something wrong. I was thinking ‘Oh God, I just want to hide,’” she said.

When Vargas started high school, she began thinking about a career as a teacher but wasn’t sure what to specialize in. It wasn’t until she decided to take a Spanish class that she saw herself being a Spanish teacher.

“Once I got into high school and took that Spanish class, I was like ‘this is so cool that I can speak my language at school.’ My Spanish teacher really encouraged me and motivated me,” she said. “I realized I wanted to do that for my students, to be able to help students like me who struggled learning English.”

While Vargas already had career plans in mind by the time she finally decided to attend college, it still proved to be a challenging experience. She not only had to get used to being in school again after a long absence but also had three children to take care of at home.

“Being pregnant while having all that workload was hard,” she said. “I was working at first but decided to quit. I was like, ‘If I’m going to do this, I just need to go full-throttle.’”

Vargas credits her husband for supporting her throughout her higher education journey, including taking care of the family financially so she could remain focused on her schooling.

“My husband was a big inspiration. He was really supportive,” she said.

Leon believes it was their daughter who really gave Vargas the push she needed to go through with it.

“My daughter is a mirror image of her. She always has a book in her hand,” he said. “I tell Maria all time that she’s looking up to her. Seeing her mom and the hard work she’s putting into her schooling, that’s definitely helping my daughter.”

‘More than just duty’

Vargas spent most of her time at Bakersfield College focused on her academics and getting acclimated to the college workload. When she began attending CSUB, she had a better handle on managing her classes and was determined to make the most of the university experience by getting involved on campus. She joined the Spanish Club last year, first as treasurer and this semester as president.

“I decided I would take the time to enjoy everything college has to offer,” she said. “The club has been a really big highlight. I feel like before I wouldn’t have had the confidence to take on a leadership position like this.”

In addition to her work with the Spanish Club, Vargas is also a member of the CSUB chapter of the National Society of Leadership and Success, an honors society that helps students hone their leadership skills.

“That group has been so helpful,” she said. “It motivated me to take more responsibility for myself. It’s helped me figure out ways to communicate with people and take a leadership role. I feel like that’s all going to help me once I’m out in the field.”

Dr. William Flores, chair of the Modern Languages and Literatures Department, has had Vargas in a few of his classes and has worked with her often as president of the Spanish Club. He said she has been a great student both inside and outside of the classroom.

“She excelled academically showing a positive spirit, attending class consistently well-prepared and providing valuable participation in each class discussion,” he said. “In my 24 years of teaching experience, I have not seen someone more enthusiastic and active in student organizations than her. She has motivated and encouraged the great group of students who form the Spanish Club. She is an outstanding, dependable leader who pays careful attention to every detail for each club activity and helps program the events well to support her classmates. It is clear that for her, it is more than just duty.”

Vargas is excited to get back into the workforce after a four-year absence. In the short term, she wants to work with high school students in Arvin.

“I want to stay within my community and help out there. I feel like there’s a lot of opportunity and a lot of growth that could potentially come from staying in Arvin,” she said.

Vargas said she hopes to be able to inspire Spanish-speaking students just like her Spanish teacher did.

“I like feeling proud of where I come from,” she said. “Just knowing that I can inspire other students with something I’m so comfortable with whereas before I would kind of feel like I don’t want to speak Spanish around anybody.”

Vargas sees herself one day teaching at a community college, but her ultimate goal is to get her Ph.D. so she can become a professor.

“I could see her being called a doctor one day,” Leon said. “The sky’s the limit.”

For now, though, Vargas is savoring her upcoming graduation and the impact it’s had on her daughter, now a high school freshman.

“It’s been really good seeing her eyes light up. I hope that she does feel motivated and encouraged by what I’m doing and I can be an example to her that she can do whatever she wants to do,” she said.