Student Video Profile: Oswaldo Subillaga ’16

‘At Holy Cross, I’ve always felt accompanied on the route we travel toward success’

‘At Holy Cross, I’ve always felt accompanied on the route we travel toward success’ ‘En Holy Cross siempre me he sentido acompañado en ese camino que recorremos todos hacia el éxito.’
NAME Oswaldo “Oz” Subillaga ’'16 NOMBRE Oswaldo “Oz” Subillaga '16
HOMETOWN Ozone Park, N.Y. CIUDAD DE ORIGEN Ozone Park, N.Y.
ACADEMICS Political science major in the health professions advisory program ESTUDIOS especialidad en Ciencias Políticas con interés también en las profesiones de la salud
BACKSTORY Oz is a first-generation college student who was born in the United States. He spent 12 years living in his father’s homeland of Guatemala before moving back to America. His mother is from Ecuador. He is bilingual. HISTORIA Oz es un estudiante universitario de primera generación que nació en los Estados Unidos. Él pasó 12 años viviendo en Guatemala, la tierra natal de su padre, antes de regresar a Estados Unidos. Su madre es de Ecuador. Es bilingüe.
HEARING ABOUT HOLY CROSS FROM SOMEONE WHO KNOWS “My best friend’s sister told me about Holy Cross. She graduated in 2012. We dropped her off when she was a summer orientation leader and she gave us a tour of the campus. I’d never heard of Holy Cross up until that point. She would always say it was the perfect school. In fact, she talked about it so much it got kind of annoying but she convinced me to apply. I got in, did an overnight stay through Admissions and just fell in love. I know it sounds cliché, but I felt at home here. As an only child and as someone who hadn’t been away from home for too long, I knew feeling that comfortable during my stay meant this was the college for me.” OÍR DE HOLY CROSS DE ALGUIEN QUE LO CONOCE “La hermana de mi mejor amigo me habló de Holy Cross. Ella se graduó en 2012. Nosotros la dejamos cuando ella era una líder de la orientación de verano y nos dio un tour del campus. Yo nunca había oído hablar de Holy Cross hasta ese momento. Ella siempre decía que era la universidad perfecta. De hecho, ella hablaba tanto de ello que me molestó, pero ella me convenció de solicitar el ingreso. Me aceptaron, pasé una noche gracias a Admissions y simplemente me enamoré. Sé que parece un cliché, pero me sentí como en casa. Como hijo único, y como alguien que nunca había estado fuera de casa por mucho tiempo, yo sabía que el sentirme tan cómodo durante mi estancia significaba que esta era mi universidad.”
ONE SUPPORTIVE COMMUNITY “My parents stayed during Fall Orientation weekend. The Monday that orientation ended we had to say goodbye, and tears were flowing. A lady who stepped out of the Hogan Campus Center who had seen us came up and said, ‘My son just graduated, and trust me I know he wishes he would be where you are right now starting another four years at Holy Cross. You’re going to have the best time of your life.’ I still remember that. I’m getting goosebumps right now just talking about it. My parents still talk about her. Those words really helped my parents calm down, and it made saying goodbye easier.” UNA COMUNIDAD SOLIDARIA “Mis padres se quedaron en el campus durante el fin de semana de orientación de otoño. El lunes cuando terminó la orientación tuvimos que despedirnos y las lágrimas comenzaron a correr. Una señora que salía del Hogan Campus Center y que nos había visto se acercó y me dijo: ‘Mi hijo acaba de graduarse y, créeme, yo sé que él desearía estar donde tú estás, comenzando otros cuatro años en Holy Cross. Van a ser los mejores años de tu vida.’ Todavía me acuerdo de eso. En este momento se me pone la piel de gallina con sólo hablar de ello. Mis padres todavía hablan de ella. Esas palabras realmente ayudaron a mis padres a calmarse e hicieron más fácil decir adiós.”
ACADEMICS AT HOLY CROSS “Tough but very, very rewarding. Classes are demanding, but then at the end of the semester you realize how broad your knowledge has become. I’ve been exposed to things that I never had before, not only because the academics are rigorous but because we address complex topics and have in-depth conversations. Being open-minded is the biggest lesson I’ve learned here.” LO ACADÉMICO EN HOLY CROSS “Muy exigente pero muy, muy gratificante. Las clases son difíciles, pero luego, al final del semestre uno se da cuenta de cuánto se ha ampliado su conocimiento. Yo he sido expuesto a cosas a las que nunca antes lo había sido, no sólo porque los estudios son académicamente rigurosos, sino también porque abordamos temas complejos y tenemos conversaciones profundas. Tener una mente abierta es la lección más importante que he aprendido aquí.”
A PASSION FOR HEALTH CARE After spending more than a decade in Guatemala, Oz has witnessed both the Guatemalan and American health care systems. “My grandfather had to have heart surgery in 2004, and they wouldn’t operate until we showed them the receipt stating that we had paid. Things like that make me appreciate the system that we have here and make me want to find ways to improve it even further. My family was fortunate enough to be able to go to the doctor in Guatemala, but there were many who weren’t. It’s sad to see in this day and age that we still have those issues. For my senior year thesis, I want to take a comparative perspective and see what we can learn from other countries and how we can create practical change in the health care system all over the world.” PASIÓN POR LA SANIDAD Después de pasar más de una década en Guatemala, Oz ha visto de cerca los sistemas sanitarios de Guatemala y de los Estados Unidos. “Mi abuelo tuvo que someterse a una operación de corazón en 2004, pero no le operaron hasta que mostramos el recibo indicando que habíamos pagado. Cosas como esta que me hacen apreciar el sistema que tenemos aquí y me animan a encontrar formas de mejorarlo aún más. Mi familia tuvo la suerte de poder ir al médico en Guatemala, pero había muchos que no pudieron hacerlo. Es triste ver que aun en esta época todavía tenemos estos problemas. Para mi tesis en el último año quiero hacer un análisis comparativo y ver lo que podemos aprender de otros países y cómo podemos crear cambios prácticos en los sistemas sanitarios en todo el mundo.”

English Translation of Video

What do you think is unique or special about Holy Cross?
What I think distinguishes Holy Cross from other colleges is — based on the experiences I've had and that my friends have told me they’ve had — is the support one feels. Not only professors who want to get to know you as an individual and want you to grow as a person and an intellectual, but also the support you receive from all the offices, and the community — from the nurses to the college psychologists. You really feel that all the offices are really supporting you and students also support you. I've never felt alone however difficult a class might be. At Holy Cross, I’ve always felt accompanied on the route we travel toward success. Whether for a test, for a paper or for a group project, I have always felt supported, and I have always felt like we're in a group. And this never ends because I have seen graduates still supporting each other, even if they didn't graduate in the same year. And I think that's what makes Holy Cross a special place, that this kind of relationship never ends, and students and alumni always find ways of helping one another.