Balancing family life and her law school dreams with fierce determination, Deyci Nunez Garcia is a testament to resilience and ambition. As a second-year law student at San Joaquin College of Law, Deyci has overcome many obstacles to reach this point and she's setting an inspiring example for first-generation and Latino students.
Deyci’s journey is all about breaking barriers and proving that with the right mindset and support, you can achieve your dreams, no matter what obstacles are in front of you. Learn about the challenges Deyci’s faced, why she's so motivated to succeed, and the valuable advice she has for future law students on overcoming hardships to create your own path.
Tell Us About Yourself and What Motivated You to Go to Law School?
I'm a first generation college student and also the first in my family to get a college degree. I was inspired to pursue a law degree after watching Just Mercy, a movie that was based on a book written by Alabama attorney, Bryan Stevenson. The book talks about his life as an attorney and the work he does to overturn wrongful death convictions. It was inspirational to see because he literally dedicated his whole life to his career. He never got married, he didn't have kids, and he has a non-profit organization in Alabama that helps people (who don’t have the means to pay for it) overturn wrongful death convictions. After watching the movie, I thought about how hard it would be to overturn a wrongful death conviction, but also how life-changing it could be to give somebody a second chance. Especially if that person wasn't responsible for the crime, but they were convicted and given the death penalty.
I'm currently a dental hygienist, but after being a hygienist for more than 7 years, it’s no longer fulfilling for me. I love learning and knew I wanted to keep pursuing my education, but I was undecided between law school and dental school. Dental school would have been the natural pathway for me since I already had the background knowledge and education in that field. But there are no dental schools in Fresno, so I would’ve had to move to San Francisco or Los Angeles to attend. I also have three sons, so moving wasn’t an option for me and as a full-time dental student, it would’ve been hard to afford living in a city with such a high cost of living.
I learned about San Joaquin College of Law and how much more convenient and affordable it was than trying to go to dental school. I realized I’m not a routine type of person and I didn’t want to put myself in a box and limit my own potential. And I like being able to engage in different types of work, so why not go to law school? Living here in Fresno, I have the support of my family and I know I’m on the right path now because things ended up working out. While some doors closed, others were opening and I feel like I finally found my purpose in life. What I’m doing is bigger than what I had in mind and definitely challenging, but I know if a dream is easily obtained, it ain’t worth being a dream.
How Do You Balance the Demands of Law School With Raising a Family?
It helps that my kids’ ages are spread out. My oldest is 20, my middle son is 10, and my youngest is five. My oldest helps me watch his little brothers sometimes in the evenings when I go to class, but during the day they're at school. Or if he's not able to watch them my mom can watch them, so it's worked out great while I’ve been in law school. I did enroll them in an afterschool program that helps them with their homework, they do extracurricular activities, and also go on trips. That also helps me out a little bit since I don’t have to rush to pick them up right after school.
During my first year of law school, I worked part-time as a dental hygienist from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m on Tuesdays and Thursdays and then I had school from 6:30 to 9:30 p.m. in the evenings, so those two days a week were longer for me. I used my time on the weekends to do homework and study. I also had to plan doctor and dental appointments for my boys, take time off from studying to take them to the doctor if they got sick during the week, plus I had school events and parent-teacher conferences. I worked part time but I still feel like I need more time to study, so I’m thinking about taking out a student loan so I don’t have to work for a semester to see how that goes. I’m still in the process of adjusting my schedule to find enough time for school studies and time for my role as President of Law Students for Community Advancement (LSAC).
What Advice Do You Have for Other Single Moms Who Also Don’t Have That Support in Law School?
It's tough, but it’s doable. I had to make a lot of sacrifices, but I’ve always had this drive to do it and I don't look at it as a bad thing. I’m doing this for me and my kids because in the long run, I want to give them a great life. I want them to know that I did it for them and that I was able to put them through college, but it takes some sacrifice and I know that. I might not be able to spend as much time with them now, but in the long run, it'll all pay off. I can’t rely on somebody else to do that, so it's just me and I’ll make it happen.
Tell Us About the City of Fresno Women's Commissioner Scholarship and How Winning That Scholarship Impacted You.
I've lived in Fresno since I was 8 years old, but I was originally born in Mexico. We lived in Los Angeles until I was 8 before we moved to Fresno and then moved again to Bakersfield during my senior year of high school before finally moving back to Fresno for good. I'm proud to be a Fresno resident because the city is supporting women in their education, so that’s a big deal. Because the City of Fresno gave me the Women’s Commissioner Scholarship, I want to show my appreciation by giving back to Fresno by helping my community.
Winning this scholarship is especially important because I’m a big advocate for women's rights. For the scholarship, I had to write about what I believe are the two most prevalent problems facing teenage girls in the city of Fresno. In my opinion, it’s teenage pregnancy and domestic violence. I wrote about my experience with both of these issues. It’s not easy to set boundaries and stand up for yourself when that hasn’t been taught or modeled to you as a child. But regardless of childhood experiences or traumas, as young women we have to take responsibility for our lives and start setting those boundaries and seeing the value in ourselves. I believe teenage girls need to learn what healthy relationships look like and how to build their self-esteem and confidence through mentorship programs.
How Does It Feel to Go From Immigrating to This Country as a Child to Going Through Law School?
I actually wrote about my immigration experience in my personal statement when I applied to law school. That’s been another challenge for me to overcome because my parents brought me here when I was one year old and it’s definitely been a struggle. I have firsthand knowledge of how hard it's been to find opportunities just because you’re not a United States citizen. I had to work in packing houses and I had to work in the fields, so I put in a lot of hard work to be in the position I’m in now. It's amazing to see where I’ve come from to where I am now and I'm so happy San Joaquin College of Law gave me an opportunity because I wasn't the perfect candidate. Growing up, things didn’t just line up for me so I had to work really hard and it was tough to get rejected at times. Those experiences did have an impact on me, but I’m trying to move past them.
In elementary school, I think what helped me was getting a lot of recognition and rewards. I also won a City of Fresno Certificate of Appreciation at the time that was signed by a City Council member. Then I got a President's Award and I started to think that I must be smart. Sometimes people see in you what you don't see in yourself, so winning those awards and that recognition helped me realize that I am smart and it gave me confidence in myself and the belief that I have what it takes. It's not just because I believe it, but people can see it and I’ve been recognized for it.
Because honestly, how you see yourself and your own thoughts are what dictate your future. You don't have to limit yourself because of where you came from, just stay focused on where you're going. You can reflect on your life and know that everything you've been through helped build your resiliency and make you a stronger person. I don’t give up easily and if I want something, I'll just keep on pursuing it. What I’ve been through helped build my character and it all added up to me becoming the person I am today. You can either take the easy road or you can take the hard road and really try to make your life impactful and meaningful, not just for you, but for your children and your community. Anything is possible for anybody, but it comes down to your mindset and determination. You have to believe it before you can achieve it and that inner belief in yourself will go a long way. It doesn't matter what you've been through, what somebody said about you, or any of that. Ultimately what matters is what you believe about yourself.
Like You, Many First-Generation Students Didn’t Grow Up Seeing Themselves Represented in the Legal Field. How Does it Feel Now to be a Role Model for Young People from Similar Backgrounds?
It feels good to be a role model. I want to inspire and encourage anybody to go to law school or chase whatever their dreams are. I’d like to be part of a mentorship program for women one day as well because sometimes, you just need that support or maybe you don't have the family support like I did. If you have somebody to encourage you, like a mentor, it helps hold you accountable to your goals. So I think it would help others to have that mentorship and I’d like to be part of that so they can make it like I did.
How Did You Overcome Some of the Challenges You’ve Faced?
What you need is a lot of courage. Because sometimes it’s scary to do things you've never seen somebody in your family do. But having courage and stepping outside of your comfort zone into the unknown and unfamiliar goes such a long way. For me, my courage came through walking by faith because I had to be willing to take steps with uncertainty. I believe if God opens the door for me, He's going to help me make it through. There's faith in myself, and then there's bigger faith I have that someone besides myself is helping me and leading me through these steps to my goal. I know I'm not alone in this journey and it helps me feel that much more courageous and empowered to keep going no matter what setbacks or circumstances I face. With God, nothing is impossible because here I am in law school. If He helped me make it to law school and San Joaquin College of Law gave me an opportunity to be a law student, then He's going to help me make it through the whole program and I will graduate in 2027. So don’t entertain the doubts and only focus on what you can do and what you will do.
What Did You Learn From Those Challenges That Will Benefit Your Clients in the Future?
In my professional responsibilities class, we talked about the fact that only 10% of attorneys are actually doing pro bono work or reducing their service fees for people. I want to offer things like that because I know how hard it was for me when I needed free legal services at one point. So why wouldn't I extend somebody a hand like that when those services helped me so much? Because of where I come from, I can relate to people that don't have the money like I did, so I'm more open to discounting my services, volunteering my time and stuff like that because I can truly relate.
I know it can be tough to relate to somebody unless you’ve walked in their shoes. But if I’ve walked in your shoes and I’ve seen where you’re at, it feels like I’m fighting for myself. That makes me even more of an advocate for the less fortunate that don't have the means to advocate for themselves. If you’re born into a rich family, you don't know what it's like to need free legal services because your family could afford them. That doesn’t make you a bad person, you just weren't exposed to that, so it might not be as important to you since you don’t have that first-hand experience.
How Have Your Background and Life Experiences Shaped the Way You View the Law?
Bryan Stevenson’s core philosophy was “we are far greater than the worst thing we've ever done.” As an immigrant myself who hasn’t had the financial resources and doesn’t come from the best family, you just go through more hardships in life and you’re more susceptible to getting in trouble with the law because you're around it more. Maybe your environment isn’t the best, so you grow up around bad influences or in the wrong neighborhood. Things like that make you more susceptible and vulnerable to experiences like that when you’re just trying to make it out of that environment.
That’s why you can’t just label somebody a criminal for life because they’ve committed a crime. People are more than that - maybe they made a mistake or they were at the wrong place at the wrong time. But a conviction puts a lot of restrictions on a person. It goes on your record, it’s something that pops up on background checks, and it makes it really hard to get a job with that. Sometimes these cases are processed so fast too and it's just one case after another, but there’s a whole life being impacted and it impacts their family too. Most people don't have that extra advocacy or somebody that's really looking into their case to find out what the issue was that got their client there in the first place and how to address that issue so they don't get convicted, don’t end up back there, etc. For example, if your client has a drug issue or a mental health issue, we need to support them so they don't end up coming back because of the underlying issue or condition that's leading them down the same path to the courtroom. There has to be a more comprehensive approach that looks at the whole picture instead of labeling someone a criminal for the rest of their life because they committed a crime.
Have You Experienced Imposter Syndrome and What Helped You Navigate Those Feelings if You Did?
I don't really feel that way. Maybe it was growing up not having everything I wanted or everything not going my way, but I don't have imposter syndrome or feel like I don't belong here. Overall, SJCL’s student population is very diverse with a range of races, ethnicities and religions, so I’ve never felt like I don't belong here.
It’s tough for me to give advice on that because I'm not sure why someone would feel imposter syndrome. If you made it to law school, you’re capable of finishing law school. I really do believe that because you need good LSAT scores and to meet the standards that law school requires, you're obviously capable of making it. It really comes down to time management and how much time you're willing to put into studying that determines whether you make it through law school or not. You just have to make some sacrifices while you’re in school, manage your time, and I think anybody can make it, so you shouldn't feel like you don't belong. Your mindset determines your thoughts, which will really determine how far you make it.
I just met Justice Shama Mesiwala at the Central California Asian Pacific American Bar Association's banquet where students were invited to honor our DEI Director, Francisco Rosas, with the Equality Award. She came over to our table to introduce herself and told us “when you walk in this place, know that you guys belong here.” So that’s what I would say to students who might feel imposter syndrome - just walk into law school like you belong here because you do, you’re here because of your own work and dedication so now is the time to stand up with boldness and passion to fight for your dreams. You just need to believe that you're capable of doing it, study hard, and put in the time, energy and commitment it takes to make it.
You Became the President of Law Students for Community Advancement This Semester. What Can Students Look Forward to From the Organization?
Law Students for Community Advancement (LSCA) partners with local nonprofit organizations to provide volunteer work with our students and I also want to do more hands-on learning workshops as well. I’d love to partner with an organization like CASA, which advocates for foster kids in the system. We also want to do different events where we partner with the Fresno County Public Defender's Office to do homeless court at the Poverello House, where they help vacate misdemeanors and infractions from people's records.
I'm also planning to incorporate mental health opportunities like group counseling sessions, maybe motivational speakers, yoga, etc. That’s important to me because last semester, I was going through some stuff and my mental state wasn’t great. It definitely impacts your concentration and focus in law school if you're not mentally okay, so we want to show students how to do the little stuff for themselves, learn about techniques to help with stress, etc.
We’re also excited to recruit more students to be part of the organization, especially first-year law students (1Ls). When I met Justice Mesiwala, she invited our group to Sacramento to see her present an oral argument at the Third Appellate District Court. We’ll also get to see her chambers and we’ll schedule a tour of the Capital as well when we take that trip in December after finals. We also want to have the founders of LSCA come speak to us in one of our general meetings about their vision for the organization and what events they did so we’re more aligned to what their goals were because it's good to have their support and be connected to them.
Why Should Students Join Law Students for Community Advancement (LSCA)?
When you apply for scholarships, especially during law school, they ask if you’ve been involved with the community. Joining LSCA is a great opportunity to show the different ways you've been involved.
Plus, we’re incorporating those wellness and mental health workshops to help with stress techniques and learning how to balance school with family, work, etc. In order to advocate for someone else, you have to know how to advocate for yourself first so you’re that much stronger. We have to advocate for ourselves in order to be mentally sound and healthy enough to do it for others in our careers. During my first year, I learned how important it is to take care of your mental state because it truly is the difference between making it through law school and not making it. I went through a lot my first semester and I know a lot of other students did too, but you have to be strong, stay resilient, and keep on going. Your kids might be sick, you might get sick, there's something always going on, so it's good to learn how you can de-stress in those situations and clear your mind in order to be your best self in court, at home, etc. That’s especially true in our profession, so learning how to manage that stress now is important for you and the people you’re advocating for as well.
How Do You Want to Use Your LSCA Experience and Law Degree to Make a Difference in Your Community After Graduation?
As LSCA President, I’ll have more experience in a leadership role and I know I'm going to learn some new skills as I go. That’s going to help me in the long run because now that I'm in charge of it, I’ll have to plan my time even better. It also gets me out of my comfort zone because I'm not the center of attention type of person, but I’m putting myself out there so it’s a good thing. The way I see it is if God helped me get this position, then now it's time to make stuff happen because I’m exactly where I was meant to be. I’ll be networking with different non-profit organizations in the community and building those relationships. And in the process, I’ll learn how to zealously advocate for people, be more aware, and proximate to the problems facing our community. One of my personal goals while I’m part of LSAC is actually meeting Bryan Stevenson, the Alabama attorney. I think because of my dream of wanting to meet him, I was willing to take on the role of President of LSAC. Because of different synchronicities in my life relating to him and his work, I’d love to one day partner with his non-profit organization and his experience is guiding me to my destiny. I'm really drawn to his work, so I might end up becoming a civil rights attorney, on top of immigration and criminal justice.
What Advice Would You Go Back and Tell Yourself or Future Law Students Before Applying to Law School?
Don’t overthink it. When you're ready to do it, just go for it. If you can see yourself as an attorney and you have the desire to help people or work for the state, then stop thinking about it and actually put things into motion. You can attend events like the Law School 101 if you’re just getting started with law school or the LSAT Prep Class if you’re getting ready for the LSAT to figure out what steps you need to take in the process. Just start learning more about law school, write down your goals and what you need to do, and then start taking one step at a time, accomplishing one goal at a time. And don’t be afraid to reach out to any of the faculty at SJCL because everyone is extremely helpful and supportive of students.
Ready to take that bold first step towards becoming the lawyer you’ve always dreamed of and learn more about San Joaquin College of Law? Attend our next Law School 101 or set up an appointment with our Director of Admissions, Diane Steel, today!