Neurelis Bautista, Fenway High, Boston, 2023
The road to my passion and who I am today was paved with beans. It was at my grandmother's kitchen table where my career as a mathematician began by counting kidney beans. By night I would sit with my mother, as she patiently explained the basics of addition, multiplication, subtraction, and division using those small but hearty seeds. Beans had a significant impact on my life because they served not only as a teaching device but also as a source of income from my family’s farming business in the Dominican Republic. At that kitchen table, I knew I liked numbers, and even though I was just counting, I realized that numbers kept me grounded and knew that when I grew up, I wanted to do something related to math.
When my entire world shifted upon coming to the U.S., one thing stayed the same, which was my love of learning. At age thirteen, having to leave my mother and grandmother at home in the DR was the hardest thing I had to do. While I had trouble understanding English and relied on friends to translate the world around me, numbers stayed the same. It was hard to be vulnerable and to ask for help, but I clung to numbers as a way to keep doing what I did best.
Since my sophomore year of high school, I have known that my love for math was going to go beyond beans on the counter and studying it in school. I started to take business and math-related college courses while in high school to further explore my passion. For an assignment, I came up with the idea of selling lip glosses. I explored the concept of a product-market fit by offering the glosses for cooler winter months as a salve for chapped lips. Developing this business plan taught me about consumer demand and pricing. Further, programs like “Entrepreneurship for Good” at Wentworth Institute of Technology and Seeds of Fortune “Yale Women in Economics” have helped prepare me to enter the business field. These rigorous college-prep programs allow me to take courses in business management, marketing, and economics and gain the skills necessary to follow markets and make informed commentary about ongoing economic issues.
Additionally, seeing the impact that beans have had on my family's business also sparked my interest in helping my community. I want to give back to my community by teaching low-income individuals in the Hispanic community how to invest and be financially stable. As the oldest of five children, a non-native English speaker, and a first-generation college student, I also will be setting an example for my younger siblings to follow. I want to show them that anything is possible and that they can achieve anything they set their mind to do, regardless of the obstacles that may come their way.
I am so grateful for the upbringing that my mom and my grandmother gave me because without them, I would not have developed the focus and determination that I have today. Though they live in the DR, they are my biggest inspiration to follow my passion and not only become a better student but a better person. Just as beans are a staple in my family’s farming business, beans play an important role in my recipes and my development as an older sister. Everyday I am reminded that my sisters are the reason why I wake up every morning and keep fighting for my dreams.
I never imagined that the humble kidney bean would have such a meaningful influence on my life. Beans have been a part of my journey since I was a little girl, unsure of how life would unfold, and they taught me how to find joy in something that some people find stressful. Kidney beans have sparked my interest in finance and helped me grow as a person who realizes her true potential.
