{"id":45535,"date":"2022-09-18T23:30:03","date_gmt":"2022-09-19T03:30:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogarchive.utc.edu\/news\/?p=45535"},"modified":"2022-09-26T08:22:57","modified_gmt":"2022-09-26T12:22:57","slug":"hispanic-heritage-month-stories-of-history-culture-and-contributions","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogarchive.utc.edu\/news\/2022\/09\/hispanic-heritage-month-stories-of-history-culture-and-contributions\/","title":{"rendered":"Hispanic Heritage Month: Stories of history, culture and contributions"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Niky

Niky Tejero, the Frances Hall Hill Professor of Music and associate dean of the UTC College of Arts and Sciences, left, and senior Magdalena Perez at the Hispanic Heritage Month kickoff on Sept. 15 in Lupton Hall. Photo by Angela Foster.<\/p><\/div>\n

From Sept. 15 through Oct. 15, Hispanic Heritage Month is about recognizing and appreciating the harmony of a culture that has historically had a profound impact on America\u2014and to discover the people who have contributed to this legacy.<\/p>\n

This year\u2019s theme, \u201cUnidos: Inclusivity for a Stronger Nation,\u201d reinforces the need to ensure diverse voices and perspectives are represented and welcomed to help build stronger communities and a stronger nation.<\/p>\n

A highlight of the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga Hispanic Heritage Month celebration is a program titled \u201cOur Stories: Nuestras Historias,\u201d which takes place at 5:30 p.m. on Thursday, Sept. 22, at Lupton Hall.<\/p>\n

A collaboration between the UTC and Chattanooga communities, “Our Stories: Nuestras Historias” aims to share stories of professional journeys. The event is sponsored by the UTC Division of Diversity and Engagement and Latina Professionals of Chattanooga with assistance from student leaders of the UTC Hispanic Outreach Leadership Association (HOLA).<\/p>\n

One of the panelists sharing her story is Niky Tejero, the Frances Hall Hill Professor of Music and associate dean of the UTC College of Arts and Sciences.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat does Hispanic Heritage Month mean to me? It\u2019s a hallmark for remembering and reflecting on the richness of my heritage and an opportunity to celebrate what makes us who we are,\u201d said Tejero, who was born in the Yucat\u00e1n region of Mexico before coming to the U.S.\u2014and Chattanooga\u2014as a 10-year-old.<\/p>\n

\u201cI remember experiences like going to the park on Sunday afternoon and listening to \u2018trovadores\u2019 playing music; watching dancers dancing folk dance\u2014\u2018jaranas;\u2019 listening to artists extemporizing poetry, and the poetry was so beautiful. Much of it is about love and pride in your homeland, and there\u2019s such a sense of love and appreciation for roots.\u201d<\/p>\n

Trovadores, she explained, are troubadours or minstrels who often improvised songs as part of their entertainment. A jarana is a typical couple\u2019s dance from the Yucat\u00e1n region that involves intricate footwork called zapateo.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn the Latin American sensibility, there\u2019s a lot more of taking that time to reflect on yesterday and yesteryear and the previous generations,\u201d she continued, \u201cand that connection to the past is such a strong source for contemplation.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Niky

Niky Tejero<\/p><\/div>\n

Tejero\u2019s story begins with her parents, Pedro and Gwen. He was a doctor from Mexico; she was a nurse from Brooklyn.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy father was born into a really humble family,\u201d she said. \u201cHe managed to put himself through school playing minor league baseball and soccer.\u201d<\/p>\n

Her mother worked as a nurse at a New York City hospital where her father happened to complete one of his medical residencies. When his residency was over, he moved back to Mexico to start his career.<\/p>\n

Pedro and Gwen kept in touch and courted long distance for eight years before getting married. The ceremony took place in New York City and they moved to Mexico to live.<\/p>\n

\u201cBy then, my father had established himself as a reconstructive plastic surgeon,\u201d Tejero said. \u201cHis specialty was cleft palates and cleft lips.\u201d<\/p>\n

She said her parents became a versatile and portable surgical team.<\/p>\n

\u201cAbout once a month, they would take us to my grandparents\u2019 house on the beach in the port town where my father was born and leave us there for the weekend,\u201d she recalled, \u201cand then they\u2019d go off into a village to perform surgeries to people who not only didn\u2019t have the money to afford it but didn\u2019t have access to the cities where such treatments were available.\u201d<\/p>\n

Eventually, Pedro and Gwen decided to immigrate to the U.S. with their five children, settling in Chattanooga.<\/p>\n

\u201cI personally came to this country in a somewhat safe and predictable and easy way,\u201d she said. \u201cMy mother was an American citizen, so I was born with American citizenship. That\u2019s a very different path than many in our Hispanic community or Latinx community. Many of these people face grave dangers. They put themselves at personal risk in hopes of having a better life.\u201d<\/p>\n

By the time Tejero graduated from Hixson High School in Chattanooga, she was living in a single-income household; her father had died and her mother supported five children on a nurse\u2019s salary.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen I think about how to make a difference in the world, I feel like I have one of the strongest templates; that was my dad and my mom,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy father had the belief that anything was possible with enough time and dedication and willingness to sacrifice, and he lived that example. He modeled for us a high-achieving mentality and led us to believe that we were capable of anything.\u201d<\/p>\n

Tejero received a bachelor\u2019s degree in music: clarinet performance from UTC in 1995; a master\u2019s degree from Baylor University in 1997; and a doctorate in music arts from the University of Kentucky in 2011.<\/p>\n

She joined UTC as an adjunct instructor in 1998 and moved up the faculty ranks before being granted a leave of absence by former Arts and Sciences Dean Herb Burhenn to pursue doctoral coursework. After the degree was conferred, Tejero was promoted to a tenure-track line.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo yes, I have had a long and somewhat unusual trajectory,\u201d she said with a smile.<\/p>\n

As is her story of arriving in Chattanooga as a 10-year-old.<\/p>\n

\u201cHispanic Heritage Month is a time to step back and reflect on history, on culture, on family,\u201d she said, \u201cand some of my strongest memories from my childhood are culturally rooted.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen I think about people sharing their stories, it\u2019s about opening a window to some of the very real and personal circumstances that have brought people here.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"The

The Hispanic Heritage Month kickoff event took place Sept. 15 at Lupton Hall.<\/p><\/div>\n

The UTC Hispanic Heritage Month celebration is coordinated by the Office of Multicultural Affairs in collaboration with other campus and community areas. The events calendar includes:<\/p>\n