Dennis Chavez Calderon

Dennis Chavez Calderon is a sophomore at Dominican University of California. 

She’s striving to get her Bachelors in Nursing with minors in Community Action and Social Change and Graphic Design. She was born in Morelia, Michoacan, Mexico but moved to the USA when she was five on Valentine’s Day, 2008. Since then, she’s lived in the city of Elk Grove, California. 

What inspired/motivated you to become a CASC Minor? 

I took a class the summer before my first semester of college that focused on many topics that I felt were really important to me and my community. We talked about intersectionality, current policy issues occurring in the Latino community, what it means to be brown, it was all just very interesting to me. I then took two Service Learning classes my first semester, not really knowing what they were about. Gradually, not instantly, I felt like I belonged. It took me a while to feel like this because I did not think my Spanish was fluent enough but after a light push from one of my professors to help in a bilingual SL site, I did not regret my decision. I was able to meet many other Latino students on campus and be of help to many people in the Canal community. As I had already taken two SL courses and was very close to meeting the CASC minor requirements, I felt like it was time for me to take the step to learn more about the impact that I can make in the communities that I am meant to serve. 

If you were a policy maker what is a change or policy you would make? 

If I were a policy maker, I would make healthcare affordable. It really saddens me to think about all the people that have healthcare debt just because they had an accident and their insurance wasn’t able to cover it. I also just recently found out that many women have to pay to give birth or hold their babies after they are born and that’s honestly horrible. 

How do you want to put the skills you learn at Dominican University to use after college? 

All the service-learning classes have helped me realize just how important service is in the major that I am in. In nursing, we have to learn to be compassionate and understanding when it comes to hearing about others’ hardships, and find a way to bring comfort. In the palliative care aspect of my future profession, it’s main focus is on optimizing the quality of life for our patients and bringing relief to those that are dealing with serious illnesses. In a similar way, us service-learners are there to help bolster the quality of life for the people in the communities that we serve and are there to bring a sense of relief. That is a skill that I will use many years after college. 

What has been an important class in the major for you so far and why? 

I would say that the most important class that I’ve had so far would be my Nursing Fundamentals class the first semester of my sophomore year. As much of a struggle as it was for me and many of my peers, I do believe that that foundation has helped me in the classes that I’m taking now as well as the classes that I will take in the future. 

What personal experiences set you apart? 

Being the eldest immigrant daughter in an immigrant family of seven has made me recognize just how differently I may see issues compared to others. I didn’t really have anyone to help me figure out life growing up because I felt like no adult would understand. This caused me to bear a lot of weight and soon develop an anxiety disorder. Although I am able to manage stress much more than before, it’s still a constant struggle. Thankfully, I have a much stronger support system than I had in my adolescent years and I give myself time to breathe. 

Describe an impactful moment from working with your community partner. 

My first year of college I worked with Spanish Bilingual Support and formed a really close connection with one of the parents that I was helping. We were able to just talk about our lives to each other and I feel like that’s one of the most impactful moments, being able to find that connection with the people that you are helping.