FLP’s Lasting Impact: From First-Generation Student to NYU Educator
- Brewer Foundation
- Sep 18
- 3 min read
Mayra Salinas-Godsey grew up with parents who made their expectation clear: she would attend college. She knew she was going. She just didn’t know how to get there.
Neither of her parents had attended college themselves. Her mother was 15 when she had her, and her father was incarcerated for most of her childhood. But they had high hopes for their eldest daughter.
Then, during her freshman year at Judge Barefoot Sanders Law Magnet in Dallas, a teacher pulled her aside and mentioned that he taught for the Brewer Foundation Future Leaders Program (FLP). He told her that she would be a great fit for the program.
“Once he talked to my mom and told her, ‘They will help her get into college,’ she was like, ‘You’re doing it,’” Salinas-Godsey recalled. “FLP filled in that gap of knowing what I needed to do to get there. I had the motivation, but I didn’t know how to apply. The program married the two ideas: I’m going to college, but how do I get there?”
A Path Forged Through Guidance and Grit
Now 33, Salinas-Godsey is a residence hall director at New York University (NYU) and an adjunct faculty member. Her academic path spans a bachelor’s in business administration from Our Lady of the Lake University, a master’s in education from Southern Methodist University, study abroad at the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, flp’s-lasting-impact-from-first-generation-student-to-nyu-educatorand a certificate in executive coaching from NYU. Today, she is pursuing her MBA at NYU’s Stern School of Business.
She credits FLP teachers with guiding her through the application process and giving her confidence to leave home. Beyond academics, the program’s etiquette classes helped her navigate social and networking settings.
“You had to dedicate your time,” she said. “You make a commitment to yourself, and that for me instilled a strong work ethic. You dedicate yourself to growing and learning.”
Mentors Who Made the Difference
During her senior year, Salinas-Godsey spent countless hours refining college essays with the encouragement of FLP instructors Rozana Rojas and Veronica Pulido.
“Ms. Pulido challenged our writing; she knew we could do better and would encourage us to do better,” Salinas-Godsey said. “She made us think a little deeper about our ideas.”
She described Rojas as her “second mom,” someone whose steady encouragement kept her motivation alive.
Travel opportunities through FLP also exposed her to private school campuses, showing her the role resources and privilege play in shaping opportunity.
“FLP was just so much more personal,” she recalled. “They personalized our journey to and through college.”
Paying It Forward
Salinas-Godsey now leads with the same personalized care she once received. She oversees a residence hall of 700 freshmen, teaches NYU’s signature “Authoring Your NYU Story” course, and serves on a crisis response team for students facing mental health challenges. Recognizing parallels between high schoolers and college students, she even returned to FLP to teach summer sessions on mental health awareness.
“It’s giving them the tools and resources to navigate mental health in high school in college, and coping skills to use,” she said.
Her commitment extends beyond campus. As a Mexican American, she mentors and coaches women of color aspiring to launch small businesses.
Advice to the Next Generation
To today’s FLP students, Salinas-Godsey offers a simple but powerful reminder: “You’re going to get out what you put in. Invest in yourself with this program since they are investing in you. That’s where you see that return on investment. Keep going. Go, show up, do the work, that’s where the work ethic comes in.”
