Maria Ortega (’22), a first-generation education major with EC-6 bilingual certification, had her first research publication, “Juntxs with the comunidad: A collaboration across two universities and one school district,” in the Texas Journal of Literacy Education. The paper shares her experiences with the Bilingual Homework Hotline, an online homework help platform created in response to COVID-19’s impact in Denton’s Latinx community. It critically examines bilingual education with a look toward improving the field for future students. Through her work in education, Ortega hopes to help underrepresented students who speak English as a second language by not only advocating for them, but also being an example of what they can achieve when they see someone who looks like them in positions of authority.