If City College was a video game, Nicholas Hernandez would be the main character. Attending class dressed in a bacon suit, carrying around a notebook filled with writing barely legible to even himself, and being known as “the club man” around campus are just a few characteristics that make up the complex coding of his life.
Hernandez intertwines his two passions for video games and helping others through his vast involvement on campus as president of the ESports Club, president of the For the Nerds Club, president of the Mindfulness Club, consultant for the Anime Club, commissioner of accessibility for the Associated Student Government, and commissioner of HR and marketing for the City College Ambassadors.
His first hand experience of the dark underbelly of the education system inspired his immersion into his school’s community today. As a young child in preschool, he was diagnosed with Sensory Processing Disorder, a condition he describes as being a learning disability on the autism spectrum that creates a reaction of sensitivity to stimuli. This diagnosis was more than just a label for his learning disability, it was a label that inherently defined the mistreatment from his peers, and the ignorance of the education system that he would have to endure for the remainder of his years in school.
“The way that the education system would handle these kinds of students is they would always separate them,” Hernandez said. “For example, most of my class times, I would always get pulled out, pulled out, pulled out. That was my life and I’ve always wanted to be with my friends and with a group, but it felt like I was, in a way, broken. I wasn’t able to be successful enough to be with them, and do what they were doing.”
During his time at Dos Pueblos High School in Goleta, California he said he was always seen as “the special kid.” The stigma around his disorder, and the isolation he felt caused a divide between himself and his identity.
“That’s why it gets to the point where you don’t even want to talk about your disorder or tell people because then they’ll treat you differently,” the 21 year old said. “I’m just a normal person just like everyone who deserves that normal respect.”
Before graduating from high school in 2019, he felt he had reached a turning point in his life; one that allowed him to bring newfound passions along with him as he transitioned into City College.
His fiery drive to be a beacon of support and guidance for others laid the foundation for the reincarnation of the 2019 Well Club into his Mindfulness Club in 2020. The club encompasses his goal to provide a vessel for connections between students, and a safe space to foster conversations about mental health.
The Mindfulness Club’s advisor Rebecca Bean has seen Hernandez grow exponentially over the past three years. She describes him as a powerful leader who has opened up a new forum of inclusivity for students, where he makes them feel comfortable enough to open up about their emotions and build connections.
“He has such a warm and inspiring disposition, and I think he really has shown incredible leadership skills,” Bean said. “I feel that students feel safe and respected to be in a group with him and they feel that they can open up about their mental health experiences and feel that they are not only respected, but also encouraged to gain support and feel part of a community.”
His second passion for video games inspired his creation of the ESports club, and his eventual position as president of the For the Nerds Club. Despite his consideration in following a professional pursuit for his interest in video games, he decided to pursue his other passion of helping others by setting the goal of obtaining a therapy license.
“It was a big turning point in my life where I was like, wow, now I want to do psychology, and be a therapist one day,” Hernandez said.
Bean emphasizes her confidence in Hernandez’s professional future and the impact he will leave behind on students of City College before he graduates in the spring of 2023.
“I just know that there’s going to be great things in his future,” the advisor said. “I know that he’s interested in going into psychology, and I think he’s just going to be a dynamic kind of counselor, or someone who really advocates for mental health in his career.”
The heavily involved student accredits strong familial support, the DSPS program at City College, and idols, including Bean as contributors to his accomplishments. In the face of adversity he has managed to turn a once negative relationship with his disorder into his acceptance of it as a beautiful contribution to his unique quirks, motivations, and ultimate goals for success in life.
“It’s always going to be there, I’m always going to deal with those challenges,” the driven student said. “My relationship has changed so much with it. Now I just see it as a part of me, as a part of who I am.”
He plans to continue on his journey towards obtaining a license in therapy, while making tangible differences at City College along the way.
“If I can give my time to this community thats so beautiful and so deserving of it, but yet lacks the ability to bridge those gaps with people, [then] I just want to be the one to really help pioneer the changes for City College, and help change the culture here, and make it so people feel more welcome to talk with each other,” Hernandez said.
