ITHACA, N.Y. -- "My twin brothers would sometimes call me a nerd, but I just wanted to set the right example for them," says Denise Fernandez, a first-generation Dominican-American and a senior in the College of Human Ecology. From her large extended family, she is only the second person to go to college and will be the first in postgraduate studies when she enters medical school at Weill Cornell Medical College this fall.

Nicola Kountoupes/University Photography

College of Human Ecology senior Denise Fernandez outside the Latino Living Center at Anna Comstock Hall.

Fernandez grew up in a neighborhood in Queens, N.Y., that has a high dropout rate. Despite the odds, Fernandez persevered in her studies and when it was time to choose a college, she decided on Cornell. "The reason that I picked Cornell was because I had the feeling that I can do anything at Cornell. There are just so many options here," says Fernandez.

While setting an example of excellence for younger family members, Fernandez also reached out to other students by living in the Latino Living Center (LLC) for three years. In her sophomore year, she was a resident adviser and provided support to the residents of the LLC. Fernandez called her experience a "huge plus" and remembered the occasions when she was on the receiving end as an incoming freshman. "There were upperclassmen who I could connect with," said Fernandez, "and they were very open to learning about my background."

In the fall semester of her junior year, Fernandez spent five months abroad in Ecuador with the International Partnership for Service-Learning doing fieldwork. Four times a week with 30 other international students, she worked in a local nonprofit clinic for patients with Hansen's disease (also known as leprosy). "When we had free time, we would share stories," says Fernandez, who is fluent in Spanish. "We would also play dominos and Chinese checkers with play pieces that the people carved themselves." The program also included evening classes on socioeconomics and social institutions of contemporary Ecuador.

Fernandez is hoping that her people skills will help her become a successful doctor. However, her goal has not always been to be a physician. "When I was young, I wanted to be anything but a doctor," says Fernandez. "I wanted to be a ballerina, a teacher, a cop, anything but a doctor." But during high school, her idea of a future changed when a favorite teacher committed suicide. "I couldn't understand how someone can experience severe depression, and sometimes those around them do not even notice their pain," says Fernandez, who decided that it was her duty to look after others in need.

At Cornell, Fernandez worked toward that goal by majoring in human development, an interdisciplinary program that explores the psychological, social, cultural and biological development of human beings from conception to death. "I became more sensitive to how childhood experiences can affect a person's current state of mind, for example," says Fernandez, who has won multiple awards and honors for academic excellence: the Frank and Rosa Rhodes Scholarship, the dean's list for four semesters, a Cornell Tradition fellowship, the Michelle Evans Scholarship and membership in Mortar Board and the National Society of Collegiate Scholars. This past summer, she prepared herself for medical school by participating in the Travelers Summer Research Fellowship Program at Weill Cornell Medical College. The program integrated classes in medicine with a research project on personality disorders and substance dependence at Rockefeller University.

At Cornell, she also has served as a career development co-chair for the Association for Students of Color, as a peer mentor for the Peer Partnership Program in Human Ecology, as a research assistant for Katrina Greene, assistant professor of human development, studying social practices in African-American families, and she has tutored students in biochemistry.

In the midst of it all, Fernandez, an avid ballet dancer, was part of the Sabor Latino Dance Ensemble, a Cornell dance troupe that performs Latin dances, such as Meringue, Mambo and Salsa. "Dancing provided a balance for me at Cornell and was an integral part of my experience here," says Fernandez.

Whether it was living in the Latino Living Center, Ecuador or at home, Fernandez is constantly motivated by her family. She understands the difficulty in achieving as a minority student. "I want my brothers to realize that there is so much they could achieve," says Fernandez.

Alex Kwan is a writer intern at the Cornell News Service.