Senior Game Designer Visits RPCS in Honor of National Hispanic Heritage Month

“Representation matters, not because we need tokenism, but because we need each other. We need to empower each other.” – Elaine Gómez-Sanchez

 

In honor of National Hispanic Heritage Month, the Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion recently invited Elaine Gómez-Sanchez to RPCS to talk with Middle and Upper School students about her career as a Senior Game Designer for Brass Lion Entertainment and cofounder of Latinx in Gaming. She also spoke about the importance of representation, relationships and giving back to the community.

 

As a Latina from Puerto Rico who was raised in New Jersey, Ms. Gómez-Sanchez shared her immigrant story of moving to the United States and the difficulty she faced fitting into her new environment among peers who did not understand her culture. Listening to punk music and playing games daily as a coping mechanism to deal with those difficult teen years, Ms. Gómez-Sanchez persevered academically and attended Rutgers University for her undergraduate degree.

 

It was at Rutgers where Ms. Gómez-Sanchez met her mentor, Dr. Joe Sanchez, who signed her up for a game and design summer program that changed the focus of her studies and career path. “Life is hard sometimes, so surround yourself with people who support you and want the best for you,” she encouraged our students. With a mentor behind her and a strong sense of self-confidence, Ms. Gómez-Sanchez earned a Bachelor of Arts in Information Technology from Rutgers University and continued her graduate studies at one of the best programs for Game Design at the University of Southern California, where she earned a Master of Fine Arts in Interactive Media and Games.

 

Ms. Gómez-Sanchez’s personal story resonated deeply with RPCS students. She started her day talking with Upper School students involved in computer science and student affinity groups to discuss her career and to listen to our students’ aspirations. The day continued with a presentation to our sixth graders, who are currently taking a game design class, where Ms. Gómez-Sanchez shared her personal project of a gaming code and interfaces of her creations. To wrap up the day, she presented to the entire Upper School and answered a few questions moderated by Stella Castro, 2023.

 

It was an unforgettable day of inspiration to have Ms. Gómez-Sanchez on campus to share her personal story and exciting career that combines science, math, logic and art. We are grateful for her honesty and energy with the students and the deep impact she made on all of us!