By Rachel Rosen, Media Production, Management, and Technology junior
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Nerves and uncertainty ran through Ceci Edelberg’s veins during her five-hour drive from Aventura, Florida, to Gainesville, Florida, for her visit to the University of Florida. She toured CJC late on a Friday afternoon, and she saw students recording for WUFT News.
Originally, Edelberg, a Public Relations junior, wanted to go out of state to branch out. She had no desire to go to UF, unlike so many of her high school classmates. However, her wish was financially unrealistic, and she opened herself up to the reality of going to college in Florida.
The tour she took in 2021 allowed her to find her academic home. In her short visit, she noticed how much UFCJC students truly care about the College and each other. She knew she could fit in because she would be surrounded by others who were as academically motivated as she was.
Edelberg is now a Public Relations junior with minors in history and Latin American studies.
She moved from her hometown, Buenos Aires, Argentina, to Aventura in January 2016 at 13 years old. Despite the drastic change, she carried positivity and optimism to embrace this opportunity. Quickly, she immersed herself in leadership positions in school, becoming an inspiration to others.
For Edelberg, Buenos Aires is like a lifelong friend — a place that will always be there to support her, serve as a source of comfort and remind her how she became who she is today. It is still home to all four of her grandparents and some of her cousins.
She found a love for the English language early on. At just 10 years old, she was reading books in English and watching American movies with Spanish subtitles, which came in handy when her family moved to the United States.
Still, the transition to the U.S. came with challenges and cultural differences. A major difference is how close children in Argentina are with their friends’ parents. She says a lot of her friends’ parents helped raise her. They would call her out if she did anything wrong, and she misses spending time with other families in Buenos Aires. Still, she accepted her new life.
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“I had a mentality of I didn’t choose this,” she said. “This is not my decision, so might as well do the best with what we have.”
Edelberg expected to be accepted in Aventura because the Miami area has a lot of Hispanic Jews like herself. However, she did not feel taken in. She did not let it bring her down either, though. She continued to seek out people who would embrace her for who she was.
“One of the girls in my middle school homeroom my first year started talking to me my first day,” she said. “We made plans that weekend, and she’s been my best friend till this day.”
As each day passed, Edelberg became increasingly comfortable immersing herself in the school community, notably through Model United Nations. “Doing Model UN kind of opened my eyes to current events and politics and news, and I was immediately drawn to it,” she said. “This is something that I care about. I care about the world around me. I care about what’s going on beyond my little corner.”
She was also involved in The Lightning Strike, the high school newspaper. Initially, she was writing only headlines, but she quickly rose to be a staff writer, opinion editor and finally editor-in-chief.