My name is Yanel Garcia, and I am Lafayette College’s Class of 2016. I currently study Mathematics-Economics with a minor in Financial Policy and Analysis, and my greatest passions are entrepreneurship, economic empowerment, and education. My hometown is Chicago, IL, so being at the other side of the world, it was a tremendous opportunity for me to travel to Madagascar during the LIME 5 Team’s winter break. Of course, the program is much more than simply being tourists; it was enriching to create an impact in the country’s capital, Antananarivo, by being tutors and mentors at Lycée Andohalo, but what is more encouraging is that the relationships with students didn’t stop there. LIME 5 and other generations are still heavily committed to communicating with the students virtually, whether it is feedback on assignments, insights into college life, or casual, intimate conversations to get to know each other. Being the first in my family to go to college, I can understand how daunting the college application process is but later learned to turn a disadvantage into strengths.
After the trip, I felt accomplished to guide Malagasy students with a similar background to mine. Nonetheless, it is my life-long goal to harbor this invaluable experience and contribute to the program both effectively and completely. I am thrilled to meet incoming students of the program in the near future and also the students who decide to study in the United States!
Please feel free to email me at Garciay@lafayette.edu.