Letter of Support for El Centro and director Elvira Prieto from 2018 Alumna

I always used to say that I first got to Centro during admit weekend 2014 and I never left until the day of my graduation. And it’s true — some of the most fondest and cherished memories from my time at Stanford were created from and by my family at Centro. I was a student staff member for all my four years, and that is probably one of the proudest things I’ve ever done. Elvira was the person that mentored us, guided us, laughed and cried with us every step of the way. She is the rock that holds our comunidad together.

As a Peruvian-American from San Antonio, Texas, when I first came to Stanford, I wasn’t sure where exactly I would find my community. It was in my freshman year when the name was expanded from El Centro Chicano to El Centro Chicano y Latino. This was an effort that Elvira led, and she consistently modeled what it meant to bring in perspectives from across our community.

Last month, I had the privilege of joining with a few other Stanford alums to have brunch with Elvira when she was visiting Chicago. It felt like a piece of home all over again, and I left the restaurant feeling like I got back a piece of me that was missing. Elvira just has this magnetic energy that draws you in and makes you feel whole. I am so lucky to have been able to learn from and bask in her brilliance for some of the most formative years of my life.

Patricia Flores, Class of 2018