Estefani Reyes Moreno never planned on going to college. Growing up in Hood River, Oregon, a mainly agricultural town nestled in the Columbia River Gorge, she expected to finish high school and call it quits. But fate, in the form of a sophomore honors English teacher, had other plans.
"I wasn't planning to come to college at all," Estefani recalls: "I was just gonna finish high school." That changed when her teacher encouraged her to join AVID—Advancement Via Individual Determination—a program designed to help students overcome various challenges in accessing higher education.
For Estefani, a first-generation college student whose parents hail from Guanajuato, Mexico, AVID opened doors she didn't know existed. "That's where I learned what a college is," she explains with gratitude. She thrived once she found help with "the basic things that people don't think about college, applying to scholarships, etc.... I come from a low-income household, so that was one of the reasons I really thought I couldn't go to college."
But go she did. Now entering her final year at Maseeh College, majoring in electrical engineering with several scholarships under her belt at Portland State University, Estefani's current success is a testament to the power of curiosity and determination—traits she inherited from her father, who never finished elementary school but taught himself how to take apart and repair anything that needed fixing, including cars. "Whatever he wanted to learn, which was mostly physics and electronic and power things, he learned it on his own," Estefani says, a note of pride in her voice: "If he wanted to fix a car, he figured out how it worked on his own."
This DIY spirit clearly rubbed off on Estefani. Initially drawn to mechanical engineering for its broad scope, she soon found herself gravitating towards electronics. The switch added extra time to her studies, but Estefani doesn't seem to mind. She's too busy soaking up knowledge and experiences.
One such experience was mentoring high school students during PSU's Invention Bootcamp. "That was really fun," she says, her enthusiasm palpable. "I got to work with three high school students on an engineering project, just answering questions like coding or how to work and integrate a small motor."
Estefani's advice for aspiring engineers? Don't limit yourself. "I really limited myself and what I could do in high school," she reflects. "I just followed the path that I was told,” but she regrets not pushing back against her teachers’ low expectations of her. None of the teachers noticed her tutoring other students or suggested she enroll in more challenging courses like Algebra and Calculus that would have better prepared her for challenging engineering coursework.
However, Estefani's journey hasn't been without its challenges. As the eldest daughter in her family, she's had to balance her academic responsibilities with family obligations. She's the backbone of her family, often prioritizing their needs, whether supporting her parents or helping her siblings. Two years ago, she even commuted two hours daily from home to PSU to better support her sister. Her academic performance in courses occasionally suffered, and she sometimes struggled to maintain the grades needed for her engineering courses.
Juggling competing responsibilities has been exhausting, and unfortunately, the few times Estefani has opened up to some of her professors she didn’t always receive much support. However, she notes that did have some supportive Maseeh staff and faculty in her corner. Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECE) professor Jonathan Anchell gave her extra time to complete a critical project for his class. Another source of support has been her pathway advisor, Linda Wasson, who has been advising Estefani since her freshman year.
Another significant challenge has been the noticeable lack of diversity in her field. As a woman, a first-generation and Latina student, Estefani sometimes felt isolated and out of place, both personally and intellectually. She's found herself suffering from imposter syndrome, comparing her background, experiences, and abilities to her fellow classmates making relating with them difficult.
Estefani overcame some of the barriers by becoming part of an identity group and by networking. As a member of Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers (SHPE), Estefani has found her niche at PSU. "It's helped me create a little community within Maseeh," she concludes. She also lauds the work of the new Dreamer Resource Center at PSU, which offered her directed support and access to resources to help navigate some of the challenges of her immigration status.
Looking ahead, Estefani's future seems as bright as the power substations she works with during her internship at Leidos. While she enjoyed the experience in power engineering, her heart is set on following her father’s passion. "I think that's my main goal," she says, her ambitions leaning toward working for a few years and then pursuing graduate school in automotive engineering.
From the small town of Hood River to the bustling city of Portland, from a high school student who couldn't imagine college to a soon-to-be electrical engineering graduate, Estefani’s determination and hard work have opened up the road to her future successes.