Born and raised in South Central Perla Sotto has lived in the same house her whole life. She shares a five bedroom one bathroom house with 14 of her family members. Sotto says in her house family is everything and she loves them but she also can't wait to go to college.
With rent prices increasing Sotto says living with her family helps everyone out. Her father, a janitor, has always told her and her siblings never to worry about money and to focus on school. Her academic success is something her family sees as the most important thing she could obtain for herself.
Although, Sotto is proud of her family and her community she says that violence continues to plague her neighborhood. Walking home from school every day she consistently sees balloons and candles decorating the sidewalks as memorials for people who have died. She says it bothers her that the media doesn't focus on the people who are shot and killed on her own block. At the end of the day everyone who lives in her neighborhood is family she says.
When Sotto transferred to Jefferson at the end of her freshman year she was failing everything from Spanish, math and even gym. She says her previous school Hamilton High School wasn't a good fit for her and she needed more support and wasn't getting what she needed there With a large students population at Hamilton she didn't feel that people could focus on her.
Sotto is also aware of her outlook while at Hamilton and says that she just didn't care about anything and wasn't motivated to do better there. She also felt that with her straight A sister, about to graduate a year early from high school that she couldn't keep up with following the success of her sister.
But she had other reasons for wanting to attend Jefferson too. Her sister was enrolled in school at Jefferson when Sotto was transferring and she had other family members that had gone to Jefferson before.
After she enrolled at Jefferson her life began to change. Immediately an academic support system was put in place and she checked in regularly with Jefferson counselors and teachers who wouldn't let her fall off track from her academic commitments.
Sotto now has a better relationship with her parents and she acknowledges her family's sacrifices and constant support they have given her. With her preparing to go off to college she contemplates how people will perceive her being from South Central. Hearing stories from her sister, and Sotto's own personal experiences, she says that people view students from Jefferson differently. She says people feel bad for students who have to go to school at Jefferson, which Sotto doesn't understand.
She loves her school and says that it's not just a few students who are "success stories" that come from Jefferson. But that every student there is succeeding in their own way and they are just like any other students in high school.
Sotto is now senior body president, she has turned her grades around and is active within the Jefferson community. Her passion to graduate high school and attend college has been ta great change and she has her head held high while applying to multiple universities.
Her love for music and singing has inspired her to explore a possible career in entertainment management. One of her dream jobs would be to work for a record label. But Sotto will never forget about her community. She plans to minor in political science and says that she wants to come back from college to live in South Central. Sotto wants to give by to the community by educating residents on their rights. "We have a lot of pride in this school. If you came here, you have a lot of pride and you want to come back," says Sotto.