Julissa Arce

Julissa Arce
Born (1983-03-30) March 30, 1983 (age 43)
Taxco, Guerrero, Mexico
EducationUniversity of Texas at Austin

Julissa Natzely Arce Raya (born March 30, 1983) is a Mexican-American writer, speaker, businesswoman, and advocate for immigration rights. She is the co-founder of Ascend Educational Fund (AEF) and the author of My (Underground) American Dream (2016), Someone Like Me (2018), and You Sound Like a White Girl (2022).

Early life and education

Arce was born in Guerrero, Mexico. Her parents migrated to the United States for work in 1994 when she was 11 years old and did not speak English. She began using a travel visa at age 11 to move between her parents' home in San Antonio and her grandmother's home in Mexico. At age 14, she remained in the United States after her visa expired, making her undocumented. She remained undocumented for nearly 15 years. Arce's parents moved back to Mexico in 2001 when she was 18 years old with her taking over their food cart business. Due to being undocumented, she bought a fake green card and Social Security number when she was 19 in order to work in the United States.

Arce was able to attend college through the Texas DREAM Act. She obtained a degree in finance from the University of Texas at Austin.

Career and advocacy

In 2005, Arce moved to New York to start an internship at Goldman Sachs. Within seven years, she was a Vice President at the company. She left Goldman Sachs for Merrill Lynch in 2011.

Arce obtained a green card in 2009 after marrying and became a United States citizen on August 8, 2014. She shared her immigration story in a 2015 Bloomberg interview.

Arce is co-founder of the Ascend Educational Fund (AEF), a college scholarship and mentorship program for immigrant students regardless of their immigration status. The organization has awarded over $500,000 in scholarships since 2012.

Arce has authored two books about her immigrant experience; My (Underground) American Dream (2016), and Someone Like Me (2018). Her most recent book is You Sound Like a White Girl (2022).

Arce was named as one of People en Español’s 25 Most Powerful Women of 2017 and 2018 Woman of the Year by the City of Los Angeles. She was awarded the Los Angeles Times Latinos de Hoy Emerging Leader Award, the NAHREP's Vanguard Award, and the Hispanic Heritage Foundation Inspira Award.

Personal life

Arce lives in Los Angeles with her husband. They married on March 31, 2018 in a civil ceremony in Santa Barbara followed by another ceremony in her hometown of Taxco in Mexico.

Books

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "The Undocumented Woman who Prevailed on Wall Street". Time. 21 November 2016. Retrieved 30 March 2021.
  2. 1 2 3 Smith, David (13 September 2016). "Julissa Arce: undocumented at Goldman Sachs and breaking a stereotype". The Guardian. Retrieved 3 September 2026.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 "From Undocumented to Goldman Sachs Exec: Julissa Arce's Amazing Story". NBC News. 27 November 2015. Retrieved 30 March 2021.
  4. 1 2 Conde, Arturo (12 September 2016). "Undocumented at Goldman Sachs? Julissa Arce's riveting new book". NBC News. Retrieved 30 March 2021.
  5. 1 2 Smith, Olivia (9 October 2019). "She grew up undocumented. Now Julissa Arce is working to end immigration stereotypes". GMA. Retrieved 30 March 2021.
  6. ↑ "Arce, Julissa". 2020 National Immigrant Integration Conference. Retrieved 30 March 2021.
  7. ↑ "The Los Angeles Times and Hoy 2016 Latinos De Hoy Awards". Houston Style Magazine. Retrieved 30 March 2021.
  8. ↑ "Exclusive Excerpt from NAHREP Latino Vanguard Award Recipient Julissa Arce's Forthcoming Book". NAHREP. 1 September 2016. Retrieved 30 March 2021.
  9. ↑ "2015 National Youth Awards hosted in Los Angeles". Hispanic Heritage Foundation. 1 February 2016. Retrieved 30 March 2021.
  10. ↑ "Biography". Julissa Arce. Retrieved 29 March 2021.
  11. ↑ Arce, Julissa (7 February 2020). "Borders Kept Our Family Apart—So We Had Three Weddings". Vogue. Archived from the original on 19 July 2024. Retrieved 3 September 2026.