I filled out my own FAFSA at 17 | Carina Santa Maria | Candidate for IL State Senate Dist 27

My parents emigrated from Germany. English was not my first language. And when my college applications asked for something called FAFSA, I brought it to my parents and they had no idea what it was. So I said okay, I think I need your tax returns, and I will figure out the rest myself. I did not know that was unusual until I got to college and my roommates asked who filled mine out. That is the short version of how I got here. Youngest of three, raised in a tight knit German community in the northwest suburbs of Chicago, first generation college student, and the kid who taught her own parents how the systems in this country worked. My first job out of school paid $10 an hour. I was a direct service professional at Little City Foundation, working in homes with young people who had autism and other developmental disabilities. It was the hardest work I have ever done, and it taught me how badly we undervalue the people who do direct care. That took me to Dominican University for my master's in social work, into child welfare, and eventually into policy. We spent time in Springfield advocating, and it stayed with me. Social workers should be at that table. In this conversation I talk about all of it. Where I come from, what social work actually taught me about how policy lands on real families, and why I decided to run for Illinois State Senate in District 27. #CarinaForSenate #District27 #IllinoisSenate Video Podcast produced by ‪@thiswaytofabulous‬ ////////////////////////////////// Carina Santa Maria is a social worker, mom, and village trustee running for Illinois State Senate in District 27. She's spent her career alongside families in crisis, and she's running to make Springfield reflect what people are actually living. Plain and simple, she's fighting for ALL OF US. Join the movement at https://www.carinaforsenate.com/ [Follow along] Instagram :   / csmforillinois   Facebook:   / carinaforsenate   Subscribe for community updates, event recaps, and where Carina stands on the issues shaping our district. Paid for by Citizens for Carina