Ana Escobedo ’21

Now located: Acton, Massachusetts

Me, in three words: Resilient, curious, driven 

What other clubs, sports, other activities are you normally involved in? 
I’m co-president of Music and Memory, an organization that visits a local nursing home and plays recorded music for patients with Alzheimer’s and dementia; and I volunteer at the Smith College Museum.

If you had to pick a music genre or song to represent you and fellow Smithies, what would it be?
Honestly, anything by Fleetwood Mac. 

“Smith was the only school I visited that made me excited to learn ... I had a sense that students and professors were fostering a community based on cooperative learning rather than competitive learning.”

Why did you choose Smith as a college?
It was the only school I visited that made me excited to learn—both because of the classroom size and culture and because I had a sense that students and professors were fostering a community based on cooperative learning rather than competitive learning. 

How has Smith changed you as a person?
Smith has made me discover my passions and interests. I was undecided until the very last second, but since my classes were often interdisciplinary and my professors were so open-minded, I was able to find what I really wanted to learn about. 

Who has become a surprising mentor for you and what’s one piece of advice they’ve given that sticks with you?
Although I wish I could visit her more often, Professor Candelario has always checked up on me after I was in her “Intro to Sociology” class freshman year. She hasn’t given me advice, more just a sense that I had someone who actually wanted to listen to me and was curious about how I was doing at Smith. 

What has been a favorite memory of Smith or fellow Smithies?
One of my favorite memories was from my junior year when I joined the newly-formed Park Annex/affinity housing. On Mountain Day, we baked pies together with Hopkins House, and I remember feeling like I was really glad to have joined this community and to have met new people at my school. 

What has been the biggest insight you’ve gained from the COVID-19 experience?
I’ve learned that I’m not as much of an introvert as I thought. I didn’t realize how much I needed other people until now, when I am forced to separate myself from my friends. The last time I had to spend this much time stuck in my house was during summer vacation high school—it is so clear to me now how much I’ve changed since then. 

What are three things that you don’t have, but that you wish you had right now?
I wish I had an internship or a job for the summer—I think everyone is craving some kind of plan for the future during this time where nothing can be predicted anymore. I wish I was surrounded by more sunshine and heat, especially since I just came back from studying abroad in Mexico. Other than that, I guess I need some more tea since I am running low.  

If you could tell an incoming student one thing about Smith, what would it be?
Take a lot of pictures and write a lot of journal entries—you’ll grow and change so much in four years. 

Is there any other message you’d like to include to the wider Smith community?
Now is the best time to check in with each other, and although we can’t physically be together, reaching out is the best way to strengthen our community.

Smithie Snapshots is a new profile series highlighting members of the Smith community, located all over the world.