09/17/2026
One of our McNair Scholars, Cisco Garcia, majoring in Political Science had the awesome opportunity to study abroad. Cisco shares “I studied at the University of the Virgin Islands—St. Thomas in the Spring of 2025. This experience showed me how representation has a true effect on people. The U.S. Virgin Islands and other territories only receive a non-voting delegate to the House of Representatives and cannot vote for president. I thought “People here truly cannot vote for their leader, even though they must still pay taxes and enroll in Selective Service.” Although studying abroad happened well before my McNair research, I do believe it’s had a true impact on my research. If it weren’t for my time in the U.S. Virgin Islands, I would never have felt comfortable being independent enough to solo travel to other countries, such as Peru, which my research focuses on. Additionally, my experience taught me that telling other people’s stories matter. When I tell people about the U.S. Virgin Islands, most don’t know about their struggles. I hope that I can take my experiences and use them to inform others about representation disparities and inequality create awareness around these issues.”
