It all started with a couple of coupons and a dramatic mother. Tania Hurtado, a young 20 year old with a bright future, did not know this was the start to her current job. Although, most of her jobs have come in strange ways, she is not one to find a job in the classifieds and follow suit like everyone else.

Hurtado is currently a professional photographer for LifeTouch studios, located in Providence, Rhode Island. The way she got there is an interesting story. Her mother who had fallen ill a couple of years ago, made it a point that she “wanted to create memories” with her young daughter before (what she believed) was her time to die. They set up their first photo session, and afterward received a coupon. Hurtado, seeing a great opportunity to have a little fun while saving some money used the coupon and set up another photo session. Her second session was with the same photographer that shot the first session. The photographer seeing her potential, asked for her information, after the second session Hurtado, yet again received another coupon and used it. After the third time, Hurtado had built a strong relationship with this one photographer. “She just called me up one day and said ‘Do you want a job?’ and I was like ‘Where?’ and she said ‘With me!’” Hurtado exclaimed excitedly. Almost two years later, Hurtado has built a list of clients that prefer her to any photographer in the studio.

Not only has Hurtado built her own list of clients, but she is a official translator for the United States, which led to her internship at the Supreme Court. Even though she only translated documents, Hurtado learned a lot not only about the system, but about the people themselves. “It was a great experience, it was a lot of fun… (I learned) a lot about weed and cocaine and how (the defendants) were caught.” Even though she explained it was a great experience, it was definitely clear that it was not her ideal job and that she would not enjoy doing it in the future as a career. As for Hurtado’s future, her high school played a large part as to what she is doing now to prepare for her future.

“My high school never had tests and quizzes…we could do internships or college classes and I chose college classes.” Hurtado attended the famous Metropolitan Regional Career and Technological Center (also known as “The Met”) which is known for its progressive educational ideas in addition to its unconventional classroom techniques. Hurtado believes it helped her soar above and beyond her other peers who attended regular high schools. She had more hands-on experience in the job field and her classes were not set up as lecture style constantly, which enabled her and her classmates to learn more. Most students are “taught to the test” but Hurtado is one of the few lucky ones who was not taught to the test and is more successful than the average high school graduate is.

Even though Hurtado wasn’t born and raised in the United States, she is already making a name for herself. She is a bright young woman with large potential who will be successful in whatever career she chooses.