Thank you for giving me the best college experience that anybody could ask for. I still can’t believe that four years have gone by, but before I go I would like to say thank you. Thank you for opening my eyes and introducing me to different worlds through your classes; if it weren’t for your Common Curriculum I don’t think that I ever would have known how interesting sociology is or how much fun (and hard) oceanography can be. Thank you for having the best professors to guide me through this journey (Dr. Nishikawa, Dr. Hermann, Dr. Middlemass, Dr. O’Brien, Dr. Gibson, Dr. Madrid, Dr. Kearl, Dr. Spener, Dr. Urquijo-Ruiz, Dr. Blanco-Cano, Dr. Martinez, Dr. Cook, Dr. Burr, Dr. Wallace, Dr. Hansen, Dr. Navarro, Dr. Plenge, Dr. Aarons and Dr. LeCoat) and the best staff members to make all those long processes more bearable (Arleen from the political science department and the staff from the Office of the Registrar: Maria, Marcos, Angie and Eve). Thank you for having the best group of people that kept our campus as clean and beautiful as possible.

Gracias por darme a la mejor familia latina que me hizo sentir como en casa durante estos cuatro aà±os. Gracias por darme a cinco hermanas de México, Colombia, Ecuador y la Repàºblica Dominicana. Es por ti Trinity que pude conocer y acercarme a personas de diferentes partes del mundo a las que nunca pensé conocer. Por ultimo, gracias a mi papà¡ y a mi mamà¡ por darme el mejor regalo que cualquier hija pudiera pedir, por que al darme la oportunidad de venir a Trinity no solo me dieron una educacià³n inigualable, sino también cuatro aà±os llenos de alegrà­as y bendiciones que nunca olvidare.

Trinity, I must be honest, I never thought that I would miss you. But as graduation day approaches and the “real world” becomes more of a reality, I have come to the realization that I will miss more than I thought possible. You’ve been great, Trinity, and I am proud to call myself a Trinity Tiger.

Con mucho amor y carià±o,

Maria Cristina Ortegon