By Lizzie Choy and Tamrah McMullen
On September 27, Daisy Mendoza, vice-president and branch manager at Regions Bank, spoke at Culverhouse for Hispanic Heritage Month, as part of the DEI Speaker Series. Mendoza is a first-generation Mexican-American from Birmingham who graduated from the University of Mississippi in 2013 with a bachelor’s degree in international business. She is very involved in her community, serving as a United Way market leader, and previously as a Fiesta Latina board member. Mendoza is passionate about development and helping others achieve their goals, and believes that with a positive mindset, nothing is impossible. Her life quote is “if you’re not uncomfortable, you’re not growing.”
Mendoza shared that she’s the proud daughter of a single mother who sacrificed everything to provide a better future for her children. She discussed her journey through a difficult childhood into her career. At times she felt she did not belong, and some people sought to undermine her success due to her heritage. She explained how she persevered to become the manager of one Regions’ largest branches (among the top 3% of the company), and that she has even higher goals that she continues to work towards.
One student attendee said, “The Hispanic Heritage Month speaker was really helpful because I’ve been experiencing imposter syndrome of being a first-gen student. I was reminded to keep going and look at my wins over my losses.”
“I really enjoyed it,” another attendee said. “As a Hispanic who also has a single mom, she felt super relatable. I’ve been to a lot of Hispanic speaker events, but this one really stood out to me.”
Other student responses included these:
- “Her story was really interesting, and I think it inspired a lot of people . . . especially people with similar backgrounds.”
- “I thought her story was really amazing. What she went through was crazy, and how she worked through it was very inspiring.”
- “I thought it was very engaging and inspiring. She didn’t really talk too much about her current job but more so about her backstory and how she got there. So, I thought it was motivational.”
- “It was really good! I really enjoyed the speaker and her experience.”