A L.O.V.E. Story: A Latina Girl in NYC Claudia Espinosa

In this series finale, Claudia shares what led to her decision of continuing her education and pursuing a doctorates in education at NYU. She reminisces about the last ten years of the L.O.V.E. Mentoring Program, and what the future holds for the organization.

In this episode (which is one of her favorites), Claudia talks about the importance of accomplishing our dreams! She recalls the moment when she got accepted to Harvard, an accomplishment she considers an achievement not only tor her but for all the young women in the L.O.V.E. programs and beyond. Claudia believes that “Life is the Art of Taking Risks. By pursuing our dreams, we are fulfilling our individual purposes and using our talents to better the world.” Though, she clearly states that achieving our dreams require a lot of sacrifice, discipline, and work. But most importantly, it requires to Believe in Ourselves.

In this episode, Claudia talks about the very beginning of L.O.V.E.! In the spring of 2012, Claudia launched the first L.O.V.E. pilot program at NYU where she was pursuing her second master’s degree. After it's success, Claudia decided to expand the program and implement it as an after-school program in public high schools across NYC. In the fall of 2012, Claudia launched the first after-school program at The Young Women’s Leadership School of East Harlem (TYWLS)! 

In this episode, Claudia recalls her experience attending NYU after graduating from CUNY. She reflects on overcoming the challenges of imposter syndrome and facing new obstacles in the unfamiliar environment. Claudia also reveals the reason that led her to envision the idea of creating Latinas On the Verge of Excellence - L.O.V.E.

In this episode, Claudia shares her enriching experience while studying abroad in Paris! Through hard work and dedication, she was able to make her dream of living in Paris a reality!

On this episode, Claudia recalls her experiences of living as an undocumented immigrant and all the challenges she faced during her first years in NYC. She relives the moment when she finally reclaimed her “freedom” and identity, and was able to visit her home in Colombia after seven years.