Posted on December 6, 2024 by Amanda Cerreto
Mia Mireles
As a young girl growing up on San Antonio’s Southeast side, Mia Mireles wasn’t sure she would ever be able to go to college. UTSA was always on the horizon, but she knew her situation would make it hard to enable her to earn a degree.
“My family was living paycheck to paycheck, but I did always want to go to college,” she said. “UTSA’s Bold Promise program was like a gift from heaven and made it possible for me to come here.”
That gift wasn’t wasted on Mireles, who knew she wanted to find a degree that would enable her to create change in communities like the one she grew up in. She chose to major in psychology in the UTSA College for Health, Community and Policy (HCAP) and minor in neuroscience. She also earned a place in the UTSA Honors College, amplifying her personal and professional development.
“Where I grew up, I saw a big lack of mental health access and knew I wanted to go into a field that would help that,” she said. “I loved all the professors in HCAP and in the psychology program. They are so passionate about their field.”
She chose to minor in neuroscience as a complement to her studies of human behavior.
“Neuroscience looks at things like, what happens in our body when trauma happens? What happens in our body when can't break habits?” she said. “The neural pathways in our brains make it hard to rewire.”
Looking back on the last four years, Mireles is thankful that she was able to attend UTSA and earn her degree. “I really appreciate the focus UTSA has on first-generation students,” she said. “Without their programs and support, I definitely would not be here.”
After graduation, Mireles plans to work with San Antonio youth, with a goal to enroll in the Master of Social Work program at UTSA in 2025. Her long-term goal is to create positive change in communities similar to her own.
“I would hopefully work with children and mental health in low-income areas,” she said. “I really want to be a part of these communities and make a difference.”
— Amanda Cerreto
