CHCI-Coca Cola Intern
Hometown: Gainesville, Georgia
School: University of North Georgia
Major: Political Science
Placement: The Office of Rep. Darren Soto
Nataly Morales Villa was born in el Mezquital, Durango, Mexico. She was brought to the United States by her parents at the age of 5 and grew up undocumented until the age of 11. Having been raised by a single immigrant mother in a low-income household, she considers her mother her inspiration to attend law school and continue advocating for underserved communities.
Nataly is currently double majoring in Political Science and Spanish at the University of North Georgia (UNG). While at UNG she has served as an officer for the Latino Student Association, a Peer Mentor for the College Assistance Migrant Program (CAMP), and Student Advisor for the Multicultural Student Affairs Office. Through her leadership roles she’s had the privilege of guiding minority students through their college journey and advising 3 student organizations.
Additionally, as a Goizueta Scholar she has collaborated with the Georgia Association of Latino Elected Officials (GALEO), to host voter registration drives at her campus and lead community service projects to raise funds for 2 nonprofit organizations. As a McNair Scholar she is currently researching the adversities Latinas face in higher education.
As a first-generation college student and formally undocumented immigrant, she aspires to open her own immigration firm and establish a scholarship fund for Latino students. As a CHCI intern she hopes to gain additional skills to better advocate for her community and expand her knowledge in the areas of immigration policy and access to higher education among Latino students. She hopes to one day run for office.