Dr. Marielisbet Perez-Quetives is a first-generation undergraduate and graduate student. She was born and raised in San Jose, California. Her mother was born and raised in the Central Valley of California, and her father is native-born Mexican. Perez-Quetives was raised by her mother and Tio Florentino (Tino) Esparza Jr. As the eldest in his family who attained a high school education, at 22 years old, Tino moved his mother and four siblings from a life of migrant work to San Jose to seek better work opportunities. In his own words, Tino said, “I wanted my brothers and sisters to have a better life because working in the fields is too hard.” Although Perez-Quetives’s grandfather was present, Tino was the hard-working father figure to his siblings and cared for his mother his adult life until her passing in 1980. 

As a young girl, Perez-Quetives remembers her mother and Tio Tino sharing stories about their upbringing and working in the fields as teenagers. Perez-Questives has many memories of traveling to Huron, Coalinga, Hanford, and other small rural areas in the valley. Her mother, Rebecca, loved being born and raised in a small town. Her mother shared many stories about being raised on a ranch and working in the fields, picking cotton and grapes with her brother Tino.  

Perez-Quetives gives grace to her mother, Rebecca, and Tio Tino for the hard work mentality they embedded in her. She did not see the value of traveling to her mother’s hometown during her childhood. However, Perez-Quetives values and cherishes her family’s history, the testimonios that guided her to adulthood, and becoming a loving daughter, niece, and mother. 

As a Chicana scholar and human advocator, Perez-Quetives says it is her life mission to advocate for equity and human kindness. Nobody deserves to be treated less than or unkindly because of the neighborhood they come from and/or for the socioeconomic status they were raised or live with. Having access to education and seeking higher education opportunities should not be a privilege of access but rather a civil right for all, regardless of race, ethnicity, age, socioeconomic and citizen status. 

As her way of honoring her family and upbringing, Dr. Perez-Quietives dedicates her scholarship and career to helping historically minoritized populations. As a first-generation Chicana from the East Side of San Jose, Dr. Perez-Quetives says:

I want other Latinas, especially single mothers, to know we are the hardest working, most dedicated, and intelligent muyers (women). There is no such thing as imposters. We belong in leadership roles regardless of the inequity structures of power that tries to exclude us. Remember, we are the fighters of our families, children, and community. Never give up!

As a young girl, Perez-Quetives never thought she was brilliant. Becoming a mother changed her way of thinking. Motherhood gave her strength and a different mentality of strength. Her son Jose and daughter Savannah motivated her to return to school to complete her Associate of Arts and Bachelor of Arts degrees.  After doing exceptionally well at San José State University, Perez-Quetives decided to apply to graduate school and seek her doctoral degree. As a single mother, she aimed to be a positive role model to her children and show them that anything is possible.

Dr. Perez-Quetives is passionate and intentional about teaching, supporting, and mentoring students. She says students are at the center of what she does. Students are her motivators. She says their mental and physical well-being are essential to her. She expresses:

Mentoring and interacting with students is what I love most. I am especially interested in seeing first-generation students from diverse backgrounds succeed and accomplish their goals. First-generation undergraduate and graduate students, mothering and fathering students, students of color, lower-income students, and transfer students need mentorship at all levels. I even need support and guidance from my mentors. It never ends!

Dr. Perez-Quetives has been successful because of her mentality of seeking and receiving support from individuals who intentionally provide guidance and mentorship from a non-judgmental and compassionate mindset. Conducting research and advocacy work around social justice and inequity stresses the importance of becoming more critically conscious of the complexity of intersectional identities, cultures, and the social demographic identities of students and how they contribute to educational, social, and economic successes and challenges. She strives to continue mentoring and educating the next generation of racially diverse students attending two-year and four-year colleges and universities.

Image: Mural Hunting in San Jose, California: A Street Art Safari, 2025