Tatiana Diaz grew up in a country at war with itself. But when the 36-year Guatemalan civil war ended in 1996, she realized what a profound impact it had on her life. “Being Guatemalan defines the kind of woman I am right now,” says Tatiana, a Fulbright Scholar in the marriage and family therapy master’s program. “Growing up in a country with so many struggles defined my interest in mental health and the healing professions. I worked with refugees and people who lived the conflict to find out how the war affected them. Seeing these people suffering—regardless of which side of the war they were on—defined my search for social justice.

During high school, Tatiana volunteered with a non-governmental organization, working with terminally ill children and youths institutionalized for a variety of reasons, including being gang members, runaways, or domestic violence victims. “This government-run home was like a jail—very sad,” she says. “Sometimes I could see no hope for their lives.” Then one day she walked in and the children were singing a Latin pop song that celebrates life’s beauty, even in the face of adversity. “That really moved me because their lives were filled with so much pain, yet they could see hope for themselves,” she says. “It was a very big lesson in my life. You can always find positive things. I always keep that in mind when I do my work.”

After earning a psychology degree at the Universidad Rafael Landivar, Tatiana ran her own clinical practice in Guatemala City for three years, mostly working with children and teenagers. She came to Syracuse and enrolled in the marriage and family therapy program to broaden her focus from individual therapy to group conflict resolution—and to fulfill a dream of studying abroad. Being an international student has forced her to examine her own beliefs and find a balance in maintaining her identity while assimilating into another culture. “I needed to see another culture to contrast and evaluate my own values,” she says. “Now that I’m here, I am discovering more about myself than I ever imagined. My goal now is to know me better so I can be a healer to others.”