She started on her path in the Emerging Scholars Program at Texas. In her freshman year, the program put Villalobos together with about 15 other calculus students from under-represented groups for six hours a week outside of class where they “discovered that studying in groups is effective,” she said. “It provided some mentoring and support,” Villalobos added. Two graduate students and one student who went through Emerging Scholars the year before came to the sessions to answer questions, math-related or otherwise, when they arose. Villalobos grew up in the Rio Grande Valley, which is over 80 percent Hispanic, and said that Austin was “a big culture shock. Being connected to minority students in ESP definitely helped.”