Education: St. Mary's College of California
Abstract: Born in Hayward, raised in Fremont, and residing in Union City, Jane-Ashley Sayo is a first generation student by the SMC definition because of her parents both graduated from college in the Philippines, making her the first in her family to go to college in the United States. Coming from a traditional Filipino background, her parents did nothing but force an education upon her. She attended preschool at Challenger for two whole years because she was too young to go to kindergarten.
After preschool was a life of rules and dress codes as Jane attended St. Edward and Moreau Catholic. Attending these Catholic schools instilled a sense of obedience in her, prompting her to do what she was told and believe what she was told to believe, no questions asked.
Being the oldest child in the family meant that a lot was expected out of her academically. She was supposed to be a perfect straight A student who got all the awards and was the envy of all her classmates and their parents. She grew up without a childhood because to her parents, school was her life. If she came home with a grade that wasn’t good enough for them, she would get the same line over and over again, “We don’t ask you to do anything else in this house but to read and study. You don’t have any other responsibilities or chores. You don’t do anything but study, and you bring home this kind of grade? You should be ashamed.” That line would usually be followed by a spanking.
So much focus was placed on her education that she became uninterested in it. She eventually stopped caring for it. After a while, her parents realized that they were being too controlling and realized that she was growing up and could make her own decisions. They started backing off as she got to her senior year in high school. Now, things aren’t as bad as they used to be and Jane is a lot more motivated than before.
Her love for education is growing on its own day by day and although in the beginning of her fall semester she struggled because she wasn’t used to the college workload, her friends and family supported her and encouraged her to do well. She is currently majoring in nursing, which is something that she actually wants to do with her life.
Keywords: St. Edwards, Moreau Catholic, nursing, catholic schools, bay area, education, obedience
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