Growing up, incoming freshman Josh Ortiz didn’t have to look far to find a role model. His mother, Montserrat Cervantes, was right there showing him the way.

Ortiz, 18, and his two younger brothers were raised in a single-parent household where their mother, whom he describes as “selfless,” taught them that hard work and avoiding excuses are crucial to success.

“She believes so strongly that I can do anything that I believe in,” Ortiz said. “I was raised to believe that nothing is impossible.”

Cervantes’s parents immigrated to the U.S. from Mexico. College was not an option for Cervantes, but she’s making sure her sons get their opportunity. Now a first-generation college student, Ortiz appreciates his mother’s determination.

“She got me to where I am now,” he said. “She didn’t go to school, but we both worked hard together to make this happen.”

A native of Mount Prospect and a graduate of John Hersey High School, Ortiz is majoring in business education as he begins his college career as an Illinois State University Redbird. He picked Illinois State because he was impressed by the quality of the business and education programs, but there were other things that caught his attention as well.

“I also chose ISU because I like its creative culture and the school spirit,” Ortiz said.

To help make his academic dreams come true, he was awarded the Redbird Scholarship and the Aim High Scholarship.

“These scholarships will help me financially and will show my family that it is worth it to go to school,” Ortiz said. “The Aim High scholarship gives me motivation to keep moving as a first-gen student and work for what I want.”

By being the first in the family to go to college, Ortiz is aware that his younger brothers, who are 16 and 14, are watching him.

“Yeah, of course, my brothers take a massive influence from my steps,” he said. “They play the same sports I played, and now maybe they’ll choose college like me.”

Ortiz is settling into his new home after recently moving into Watterson Towers. He’s looking for a job on campus, and he’ll keep his online job as a quality engineer for a plastic company. For fun, he’ll check into joining some clubs, and he has a particular interest in Campus Recreation and its sport clubs. 

“I want to see if I can join a flag football team at Campus Rec or even create a football club there,” he said.

In the classroom, he’ll be studying business education in the College of Business with plans to teach business.

“My plan is to teach and later go into administration and hopefully be the principal of a high school,” Ortiz said.

In addition, he’s a fluent Spanish speaker and earned the State Seal of Biliteracy. According to the Illinois State Board of Education, the seal “recognizes public high school graduates who have attained a high level of proficiency in one or more languages in addition to English.”

As he pursues a career in education, he doesn’t plan to give up his creative passion for fashion. On the side, Ortiz has designed his own clothing line called High Street that he wants to grow. His target demographic is “kids like me.” The idea came from his own clothing likes and dislikes.

“I was really investigating the way I dressed, always in sweatsuits and hats, so I checked out some top brands for quality,” he said. “They were all pretty similar, so I took my fashion style, what I like, and combined them and made a clothing brand.

“It’s comfort and style in an affordable way. I bring the nice clothes in a nice style.”

Like a lot of students beginning college, Ortiz is ready to get this part of his life started.

“I’m very excited to get out of my hometown a bit and explore a new area,” he said. “I’m excited to meet new friends and to definitely be very involved in stuff.” 

Ortiz attributes his greatest successes to his mindset.

“I am self-driven and understand the value of expecting more from myself and asking more from others,” he said. “For example, when I interviewed for an entry-level position at Chick-fil-A, I asked what I needed to do to become a manager. In less than a year, I achieved that goal, and now I am a valued shift manager.”

That kind of focus and ambition were already present in high school. When he sought a mentor, he went to the top.

“Knowing that I wanted to explore the career path of education administration, I approached our school’s principal about being my mentor, and he agreed,” Ortiz said. “I have learned the power of asking for more and about the burdens and rewards of more responsibility.

“I watched my mom take on the role of both parents when she was raising me, and I feel the need to always step up—like she did for me—and do more.”

Ortiz plans to be a student who does just that and one who leads by example.

“I want to invest my time in making everything I do a growing experience,” Ortiz said. “I’m committed to making my college experience the most it can be.”

Read about all of the students featured in our “Newest Redbirds” series at News.IllinoisState.edu.