Kaleidoscope

A swarm of butterflies is called Kaleidoscope. It's our hope you will enjoy this Kaleidoscope of stories sharing our students' achievements, news, and events. Take flight with us!

As autumn unfolds, we celebrate change, growth, and the courage to start anew. This semester, a total of 17 Monarch students embark on their incredible journeys, each in a different part of the world, each creating a story that reminds us why every fresh start matters.

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Update November 2025

The Psychology of New Beginnings: What Change Teaches the Brain

By Fernanda Tello:

Taking Moving to a new country to study is more than leaving home, it rewires your mind. As a psychology student in Prague, I’ve seen myself move through Lysgaard’s (1955) U-shaped model of cultural adjustment.

At first came the honeymoon stage: everything felt exciting and new. But soon, culture shock hit; no one smiled like in Mexico, I couldn’t understand the language, and my cold room felt nothing like home. My body stayed on alert, my mind racing to adapt. Over time, I realized that discomfort was growth. Each new Czech word and metro route was neuroplasticity in action, my brain rewiring to help me find balance. Gradually, I entered recovery and adjustment, when life stopped feeling foreign and started feeling mine. I learned that resilience isn’t just mental but biological: it regulates stress, strengthens focus, and helps us adapt. The challenges didn’t disappear; I changed. I stopped searching for “home” and started building it within myself.

Now, I still smile at strangers, it's my way of blending Mexico and Prague. True adaptation isn’t forgetting who you are, but becoming someone who finds harmny in more than one world.

Finding My People in a New Country

By Tessa:

Saying goodbye to the same faces I’d seen for the past sixteen years was hard. What felt even harder was landing in a country where every street looked unfamiliar and every classroom was filled with strangers. I couldn’t glance at my best friend to share an inside joke, and I was too nervous to talk to the person sitting next to me. That’s when it hit me, moving here wasn’t just about adapting, it was about starting from scratch and building a sense of belonging on my own.

I’ve never thought of myself as an introvert, just someone who takes a little time to warm up. Still, my first day at university was an eye opening experience. My heart raced every time my name was called, and I could feel every pair of eyes turn toward me. But after a few days, things began to shift. Faces became familiar, conversations felt easier, and soon I was learning everyone’s names.

Two weeks in, I decided to host a small get together with my classmates so we could talk about something other than assets and linear equations. That night broke the ice, it helped people remember me, and more importantly, it helped me connect. I may not be close with everyone, but I can confidently say I’ve gotten to know each person beyond just a name.

Another thing that changed everything was learning to say yes. Living here made me realize how much I enjoy time alone, but it also reminded me that comfort can sometimes become a cage. For my first month, I said yes to every invitation, every plan, every chance to explore. My social battery didn’t always thank me, but those moments helped me meet incredible people and feel part of something bigger.

Looking back, it’s strange to think how nervous I once was to speak up in class. Now, I can talk to anyone in there like we’ve known each other for years.

3 THINGS I’M LOVING THIS MONTH

By Fernanda Elizondo:

Most of my motivation comes from what keeps me inspired in my day-to-day. As an art student, it’s part of my nature to have a more creative outlook on how I go about life; here are some things that I’ve been loving this month!

• My environment: before moving, I was well aware of how different my environment would be. Cornish nature changes with the season, and as winter draws closer, the trees are changing colours and my breath condenses in the cold wind: it’s a movie-like autumnal scene!

• The habits I’m building: being independent for the first time poses its challenges, but it also means I have to build my own habits to keep up with responsibility. Cooking during the weekends, for example, is a great activity I’ve kept up with in order to save myself time during busy days, and nothing beats a home-cooked meal.

• My family: while we’re so far away from each other, weekly video calls to catch up and chat has become a pretty important part of staying balanced. I miss them a lot, but they’re a big part of why I’m here in the first place, and those calls remind me of that every single time. I look forward to visiting them soon.

where's monarch's mug

Follow the mug!

The Monarch Mug made its way to Prague! It’s been exploring the city alongside Fernanda Tello as she studies psychology, discovering new perspectives, cozy cafés, and the little moments that make this chapter unforgettable.

REFLEXTIONS

By Natalia:

Adapting to change and becoming independent seemed intimidating at first. Before coming to Spain, the idea of living alone and handling everything felt overwhelming, but once I arrived, I realized most of the obstacles I feared were only in my mind. Little by little, I began doing things on my own; going to the bank, grocery shopping, paying rent, registering for classes, and organizing my documents.

From the moment I arrived in Segovia, I felt a sense of belonging. The city may be small, but it’s full of life, and my university gathers students from all over the world. Being part of such a diverse and welcoming community has made me more aware of cultural differences, sometimes in funny and unexpected ways. Instead of frustration, these moments remind me how unique and beautiful each culture is.

One of the best parts of this experience has been the friendships I’ve made. Back home in Cabo, everyone shared similar backgrounds, but here my friends come from many different countries, each with their own traditions, languages, and perspectives. Despite our differences, we always find connection.

Every day feels like a small adventure. I try to make the most of every opportunity; joining new activities, exploring the city, or simply spending time with people from around the world. Yoga, art classes, jewelry making, climbing, and even wine tasting have all helped me learn more about myself and the world around me.

Growing in French

By Melissa:

In this season of transformation, I dive into vulnerability while keeping my head and shoulders upright. I live the French language every day; a means of communication I adopted two years ago and that now shapes my social life, daily routines, and professional preparation. I navigate slang full of acronyms, clipped and inverted words, expressive sounds, and borrowings from other languages, each with its own nuance. In class, I adjust my listening to absorb technical concepts, civil engineering vocabulary, numbers, and all the explanations behind them.

Even though I can understand others and express myself clearly, I still face limitations I never feel in English or Spanish. It takes extra focus to find the right words and arrange them in a way that truly conveys my ideas. Yet the more time I spend here ; living, learning, adapting, the more natural and fluent everything becomes. I’m grateful to navigate this stage of change, new responsibilities, routines, and discoveries through a language that expands my mind and opens new possibilities.

By Fer:

From the beginning, I wanted to take advantage of every opportunity the university offered, even though the fear of trying to do too much sometimes felt overwhelming. This new stage became a chance to start from zero and shape my future, surrounded by possibilities and people who can guide me. At the welcome event, I learned about FESAL, and after interviews, tests, and presenting an innovative project, I was selected as the coordinator of academic training. That experience made me question my purpose and clarify my goals, leading me to adjust the plans I originally had for the next few years. Now I know I want to develop new skills and grow as a leader. Next year, I’m considering joining the next student society administration, and later on, going on an exchange program or taking a leadership role in the marketing student society. For now, I’m focusing on my studies and learning as much as I can without overwhelming myself, making the most of every opportunity.

Finding Her Voice

Cooking My Own Beginning

By Fridha:

Back in high school, life was simpler; classes, homework, and workouts. Now there’s also grocery shopping, cooking, cleaning, and managing a full workload. Balancing everything was hard at first, but it’s gotten easier. Eating well has always mattered, and living alone showed that taking care of yourself goes beyond finishing assignments. Cooking slowly shifted from a rushed obligation to a small daily ritual: music on, chopping vegetables, experimenting with recipes, and learning to listen to what the body needs.

Food also opened the door to new friendships. In a building full of ITESO students, offering a slice of pie to the girls next door turned into nights filled with stories, laughter, and connection. A simple pie became the first step toward building a new community far from home.

ACTION

Eric's word of the MONTH:

DONT WAIT. THE TIME WILL NEVER BE JUST RIGHT

Marco’s 48-Hour Challenge:NASA Space Apps Hackathon

So! Let me tell you a bit about my participation in the Space Apps Challenge Hackathon. It was absolutely crazy. I signed up with a classmate I really admire, and he invited a few friends I had never met, so we ended up forming a completely new team.

For those who don’t know, a hackathon is an intense 24–72 hour event where you work nonstop to solve one or several assigned challenges. We chose one about flower bloom, where the goal was to create a tool that could predict or generate insights about the phenomenon.

The first phase was definitely the wildest: figuring out everyone’s skills, working with people I had just met, and taking the initiative to lead the team, organize the structure, and make sure the project was both strong and doable. But the hardest part came right after—finding the right open data. We spent almost eight hours searching for usable datasets. Still, we had to move forward, so we put our best coder to work, started building the variables, and decided we’d adjust later if the datasets didn’t match. The point was to start tackling the hard part as soon as possible.

What marked me the most was stepping up—pitching ideas, organizing the workflow, and always thinking one step ahead. That became one of the most important lessons of the whole experience.

Once we finally found the right NASA APIs, we switched into full-focus mode to code and optimize our flower bloom predictor. And we actually finished it. We submitted the project… with only 30 seconds left before the deadline. My heart was racing for minutes after that, and I’m sure my teammates felt the same.

In the end, it was 48 hours of intense learning, teamwork, networking, coding, and building something that could, hopefully, have a global impact one day. It’s amazing how much you can learn in such a short time. Crazy, challenging, and super fun. May the learning never end!

BY: Marco Guzman

New Chapters and Brave Hearts

As I look back on the stories in this edition, I’m reminded of how powerful it is to begin again. Whether in a new country, a new role, or a new stage of life, these students show us that courage comes in many forms, from boarding that flight to raising your hand in class for the first time.

Thank you for reading, for growing with us, and for believing in the power of new beginnings.

Daniela Enríquez

Newsletter Editor

Courage & Change

Q: EMA, what is the significance of “flutter with purpose”?

EMA:
You know how butterflies move?
They’re not fast or fierce or perfectly coordinated.
They flutter — softly, gently, sometimes in zigzags — but always forward.

When I say “flutter with purpose,” I’m reminding you that progress doesn’t have to look big or dramatic. It can be small. Quiet. Imperfect.

A decision.
A habit.
A kind word.
A question you’re brave enough to ask.
A moment where you choose the better version of yourself.

All those tiny flutters add up.
They shape who you become.
They shape what your life becomes.

You don’t need everything figured out.
You just need to make the next intentional move.

So keep fluttering…
Not randomly.
Not to please anyone.

But with purpose — your purpose. 🦋✨

🦋 Introducing ASK EMA

Link to video

EMA is the voice and guide inside our Emerging Monarch Academy (EMA) workshops — part mentor, part motivator, part “ask better questions” coach. EMA believes one simple truth:

“Who you’re becoming matters just as much as who you are.”

EMA isn’t here to give all the answers. She’s here to spark curiosity, confidence, and conversations that help students grow. And now, she’s joining our newsletter to share those ideas with you!

Meet EMA in the video below

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