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Whether she's leading a group of middle school students through a process to identify the root causes of problems in their community, or taking a group of Latinx high schoolers around the CU Boulder campus, there is a strong magnetism around Fernanda Cerros. A recent graduate in double majors of International Affairs and Political Science, Cerros is fired up for her next chapter thanks to the inspiring experiences that fell outside of her major coursework — in CU Engage, the Center for Community-Based Learning and Research based in the School of Education. In these programs, she had the opportunity to study, research, and hone her leadership skills through hands-on experience with community-based civic engagement. Most importantly, she discovered her passion and found a sense of belonging at CU Boulder, without which, she is certain she would have burnt out earlier. She embodies an unquestionable confidence and clarity towards the work at hand that draws you in. Her influential presence is a powerful force in shaping the spaces she occupies as she applies herself towards a collective effort to advance justice in her communities. 

Cerros started her first year as a Puksta Scholar. Puksta is a competitive scholarship program open to CU Boulder undergraduate students that accepts a small cohort of students each year with ‘the explicit purpose to serve as catalysts for positive change on campus and in our local, national and international communities.’ 

Through Puksta, she learned about Public Achievement (PA), a youth-led civic engagement and social justice program modeled after youth organizers during the Civil Rights Movement that pairs undergraduates with K-12 students to identify and address issues affecting them and their communities. Fernanda’s enthusiasm permeated the conversation as she spoke about the middle school and high school teams she has coached through PA and the YES4CO (Youth Ethnic Studies for Colorado) teach-ins she has been a part of over the past year to expand Ethnic Studies curriculum into area high schools. 

“We know this can be done,” she says. “When I picture what the world could be, there is so much incentive to keep fighting.” 

Soraya Latiff, Co-Director of the PA Program at CU Boulder describes Cerros as “lighting up any room she walks into.” This light inspires and drives her peers and mentees to take an active role in transforming their communities. 

“Her passion has inspired over 40 young people to learn and unlearn their values, beliefs about themselves and people of color,” Latiff added. “She has inspired them to think critically about the school and political systems around them and activate their voices. Fernanda leads from a place of revolutionary love, a topic and a practice she continuously reflects to me is one of her guiding values she has learned in PA. Revolutionary love is the choice to labor on behalf of, for, and with, others, ourselves and those who might oppose us. It is putting in the work today that you might not see or reap the benefits of and requires deep commitment to the possibility of a different world that centers the human dignity, freedom and care for all peoples in the systems that come.”

Through PA, Cerros learned about the Aquetza Academic Summer Program and became a counselor during the summer of 2023. Aquetza is a free, one-week summer residential program on the CU Boulder campus that provides high school students with strong ties to Chican@/Latin@ communities from across Colorado with an interactive, academic enrichment experience focused on engaging Chican@/Latin@ youth in examining the history, literature, health science, and relevant social and political issues surrounding their cultural communities. Being an Aquetza counselor was both hard and rewarding, Cerros says. 

“I remember sitting in the dorm at night, and I was talking to my roommate, and I was looking up at the ceiling, and I was like, ‘I'm exhausted.’ And she goes, ‘yeah, so am I.’ And I was like, ‘but you know what, I could do this for the rest of my life.’” She further reflected, “These programs are life-changing, and that’s what keeps me going.” 

Cerros credits Puksta, Public Achievement and Aquetza with being foundational in the future direction of her life. 

“Literally one program led to the next, which changed my life, which led to the next, which changed my life, and because of these three programs and the culmination of them, I now have a different vision of what I want to do.” 

She’s learned that she loves working with youth, especially in a social justice context where she is able to lead them in exploring different epistemologies and support community-based change. “Being able to teach is one of the things that fills my cup the most, she added.”

Acknowledging that activism and social change work can be taxing and tough, she shared that she feels solace and peace in the work she is doing in CU Engage programs. 

“It can feel so heavy and hopeless at times, like there is so little that I can do. I have to remember that there is no doing too little or doing too much, she said.“There is just doing something. I share this with the youth I work with as well, who feel particularly powerless. Being able to do something is empowering and reminds you that you do have power to create change.” 

Ana Contreras, Director of the Puksta Program reflects on her past four years with Cerros and the ways she goes beyond her role as student and peer to mentor other BIPOC (Black & Indigenous People of Color) students for success on campus by sharing her organizing work, her experiences on campus as a first generation scholar, and her strategies for success. 

“I have personally witnessed how she uplifts students through this mentoring, especially those that have been struggling to belong on campus and to succeed in their classes,” Contreras said. “I believe that her presence and mentorship has both motivated students to stay on track for their academic goals and also pushed them to develop impactful civic-engaged projects.” 

Jackie, a CU Boulder first-year student, is a testament to Cerros’ mentorship. “When I considered CU Boulder, it stood out, but concerns about diversity held me back. Fernanda changed my perspective with words etched in my memory. 'Jackie, come to CU so that more girls like us can show we belong in these spaces too.' Her encouragement wasn't just about my choice; it was about breaking barriers and paving the way for others who share our journey. Thanks to Fernanda's wisdom, CU became more than a college – it became a platform for empowerment and inclusivity for me. “

Cerros is now pondering how she wants to continue this work after she graduates. She feels strongly that whatever that looks like, she’ll continue to participate in and uplift the work of Aquetza, PA and YES4CO.  In these spaces, she feels she can bring her authentic, true voice and ‘speak truth to power.’ In the future, she is also considering pursuing graduate work in ethnic studies as well as a teaching license. Wherever her path leads, she will continue to lead from revolutionary love. 

“There's so much love and there is so much community here,” Cerros said. “There is such a push to do this work, but to do it with others. It’s not individualistic at all. It’s really collective and community-based.” 

Fernanda Cerros was one of two undergraduate students to receive the President's Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Award in April of 2024. She was selected from a large pool of applicants encompassing students from across all four CU campuses for her dedication to and impact on advancing DEI goals at CU Boulder and in the community at large. During her time as an undergraduate at CU, Fernanda was a Puksta scholar, Public Achievement coach and mentor, Youth Ethnic Studies for Colorado (YES4CO) youth organizer, and Aquetza counselor. 

Written by Annaliese Miller