A woman faced with many struggles of being a Hispanic 1st generation college student,

Mrs. Janie Martinez managed to push through and defeat the obstacles in her way. She was in a

family of 9, and her parents had only a 3rd grade education and did not speak English. What made

her stand out to me was her love of God. Many people who are successful today forget to thank

God for where they are, but Janie emphasized the fact that without God you cannot be a servant

leader. She faced poverty, problems within herself, and struggled with her culture because it is

not an acceptable one in the eyes of many people in society. She took “the road less traveled by

her world,” and has managed to become a successful director of education at Care Net of Central

Texas and has a master in social work.