JoAnna Gallardo is originally from Wylie, Texas. She started attending Texas Wesleyan University fall of 2017. College was never really a plan for her. People told her to forget about ever going to college due to her disabilities and coming from immigrant parents. People told her it would be harder and probably not even possible for her to go to college. “I was always told that I wouldn’t do good in college and to try something that was less challenging,” Gallardo said “I believed that, until one teacher truly believed in me and supported me.” 

She is an education major that focused her degree on early childhood to grade six. She also has obtained an English as a Second Language (ESL) certification while in school. She dreams of teaching in an elementary school. As a teacher, she wants to be the person that supports her students. She wants the students to know that is there for every last one of them. “I want to push my students to be the best they can be,” Gallardo said. Her goal in her career is to take part in shaping a generation. From this goal, she is invested in changing society for the better starting with one kid at a time. 

While attending Texas Wesleyan, Gallardo became a part of Alpha Xi Delta. She was in Bilingual Education Student Organization (BESO) through 2017-2020. They are many things she was proud of throughout her college career. One of her biggest achievements was that she made the Dean’s List all eight semesters while at Wesleyan. She said she couldn’t have made it through college without her support system. Her support system includes her parents, siblings, family, and friends.

She enjoyed being a Ram. One thing she loved about attending Wesleyan was the inclusive tight-knit community that the university was. Leaving Wesleyan is a bittersweet feeling for her. The closer she gets to graduation the more mixed feelings she gets. “I am excited to begin a new journey, but at the same time sad to leave the home I’ve built in Fort Worth,” Gallardo said. She is excited to see what the world has to offer and to meet the students that she will teach throughout her career. 

She still has big plans for the future. School is something she is passionate about. She doesn’t plan on just stopping at her bachelor’s degree. “I plan on getting my Master’s curriculum and instruction after a few years of teaching,” Gallardo said.