Sharing Her True Self

Written By: Ian Silvester

Nestled along the hallway of the Echols building is Catherine González. There she works diligently to help high school students find success that translates to their next endeavor, whether it’s the University of Arkansas – Fort Smith or elsewhere.  

“A majority of them do end up coming to UAFS,” she said with a smile. 

A lot of that is thanks to the work she does as TRIO Upward Bound Coordinator. 

González has been in her role for three years. She advises high school freshman and sophomores their ideas for the future, provides them with as many resources as possible, and plans events for the program. 

“It’s important, especially in this region—Fort Smith area and the River Valley in general—because we don’t have that many students who’s parents have gone to college,” she said. “We’re targeting first-generation students, and those who feel like they don’t have the opportunity to go to college either for financial reasons or for lack of preparation.” 

The Upward Bound program is federally funded through grants that González describes as being a college prep program that “helps students be more prepared for college and introduce them to college life prior to them graduating from high school.” 

Prior to working with Upward Bound, González was a student at UAFS. She graduated with her bachelor’s degree (2019) in Spanish with a minor in teaching English as a second language. After graduation, she took a role in the UAFS International Relations Office.

González was born in California, but her family is from La Paz, El Salvador. As a native Spanish speaker with international parents, the degree and job just made sense. However, her heritage did pose a challenge at times. 

“Coming here (Arkansas) was difficult navigating at first,” she said. “I didn’t know if speaking Spanish was allowed.” 

At UAFS, she saw it was allowed and even encouraged. 

While working on her degree, González studied aboard in Santiago, Chile, and joked that during that year, she experienced three winters having traveled to South America during the North American summer. While working in the International Relations Office, she used her Spanish heritage and study abroad experience to connect with students. 

“When people integrate, they immerse themselves in the language and culture. That was actually one thing that I mentioned to international students,” she said. 

Soon after graduating, González was one of the leaders in promoting and organizing events for Hispanic Heritage Month at UAFS. Now in its fifth year, she continues to serve on the committee that makes events happen from Sept. 15 through Oct. 15 every year. She said it is one of her favorite times of year. She not only gets to celebrate her own Salvadoran culture, but all Hispanic countries.

“It makes people feel at home,” González said.  

While she identifies as Salvadoran-American, she lives the American part of her life every day. Hispanic Heritage Month gives her an entire month to celebrate her Salvadoran heritage, from food, music, dance, and traditional dress. 

“I love this time to introduce my background and why my country matters to me, as well as why this country matters to me,” she said. 

González is proud of her Hispanic heritage. She is a first-generation student; she is a lover of language who has studied Portuguese, French, Korean, and Thai in addition to English and Spanish; and she is a world traveler. González also holds a master’s degree in tourism management, which she received from Colorado State University in 2025. 

• Tags:
• Trio Upward Bound
• Lion Voices
• UAFS Alumni