Cosumnes River College welcomed Julissa Arce, a writer, speaker and advocate for immigration rights, as a keynote speaker on Tuesday as part of Latinx/Hispanic American Heritage Month.

The presentation took place at the Winn Center on Tuesday and was organized by the Puente and MI CASA programs.

A published author, Arce has written the books “My American Dream,” “Someone Like Me” and her latest “You Sound Like a White Girl.”

Arce talked about her personal experiences as a Mexican immigrant growing up in San Antonio and experiencing oppression during her childhood through college years.

She also spoke about her experiences working on Wall Street and how she experienced imposter syndrome.

“I often get asked why I left Wall Street,” Arce said. “I loved New York City, I was doing great and making a lot of money, but I was constantly reminded that I really wasn’t supposed to be there. There were times when I walked into a client meeting and was asked to get coffee because they thought I was the assistant and not someone doing the presentation.”

Arce said she had always wanted to be a writer and tell stories but she didn’t think writing was on the approved professions list of immigrant parents.

According to an article from MSNBC, Arce became the Vice President of Goldman Sachs by the age of 26 and took a risk to leave that position to become a writer.

Arce said the attendees were engaged in the presentation and made her feel welcome.

“I loved how many groups of students came together to join us today and it is my favorite type of audience to speak to,” Arce said.

Melissa Sanchez, success coach for MI CASA, said this event brought the Latinx community together and gave students a healthy reminder that they belong and to overcome imposter syndrome.

“Some of the stories about first-generation students experiencing Imposter Syndrome, that is something I related to and I was able to myself in Julissa’s writing as well,” Sanchez said.

José González, interim director for MI CASA, said this event was empowering for not just Latinx students who attended, but also everyone.

Although Arce’s presentation gave some cultural insight for Latinx students going into their education and professional fields, González said the insight could apply to any immigrant student or students with immigrant parents.

“I come from an immigrant background and a lot of things Arce spoke of were things I went through, such as trying to assimilate to American culture and trying to sound more American than Latinx,” González said.

Ashley Cosby, a 45-year-old accounting major, said this event was a good experience and good lesson for her Women in History class to give some insight on the Latinx culture and the challenges they face.

“I felt this seminar gave me insight that you could succeed no matter what culture you are a part of and that you could always become bigger and proud of yourself,” Cosby said.