How CIEE Helped Jemise Ray De La Cruz '03 Build a Career Rooted in Cultural Understanding
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As a Spanish major from Alabama, Jemise Ray De La Cruz knew that language learning required more than textbooks. In 2003, she chose to study abroad with CIEE in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, immersing herself in the language, culture, and history while exploring her interest in the African diaspora.
People are really nice and concerned about all the members of their society, no matter how young or old.
Living with a host family and navigating daily life in Spanish transformed the way she understood both language and community. She was struck by the Dominican Republic's cultural diversity and by the openness and care she experienced from the people around her.
I thought to myself, this was a place I could come back to," Jemise recalls. "People are really nice and concerned about all the members of their society, no matter how young or old."
She did return. After her semester abroad, Jemise returned to the Dominican Republic to participate in a CIEE internship in Yamasá, where she contributed to research tracing Dominican traditions to their West African roots. Overall, she spent nearly a year in the Dominican Republic on CIEE programs, deepening both her Spanish language skills and her understanding of the connections between cultures.
[Studying abroad] gives you a different perspective.
After returning to Alabama, Jemise saw a growing need for Spanish-language interpreters in healthcare. Encouraged by her mother, a nurse, she completed interpreter training and began a career that has now spanned more than 20 years.
Today, she serves patients and families as a medical interpreter at Vanderbilt University Medical Center. She credits her CIEE study abroad experience in helping her empathize with patients from different cultural backgrounds, where the assumptions of American medicine don’t always apply.
“It gives you a different perspective," she says. "Instead of thinking, 'Why is this woman just now showing up at 36 weeks pregnant?' you understand that maybe where she's from, this was just how it was done."
Without the program, I don't know where my Spanish would be…It's had a personal and professional impact on me.
Jemise's story reflects CIEE's mission: to help people gain the knowledge, skills, and perspectives needed to build bridges across cultures and contribute to a more peaceful world.
"Without the program," she says, "I don't know where my Spanish would be. I don't know if I'd be able to communicate with my in-laws. I don't know if my [Spanish-speaking] husband and I would have hit it off. It's had a personal and professional impact on me."
Open the Door to Life-Changing Global Experiences
In preparation to celebrate 80 years of expanding access to international education, CIEE launched the CIEE Global Engagement Fund in 2026 with a goal to raise $10 million for scholarships that will enable more students to study and intern abroad. Every scholarship opens doors to experiences that can shape careers, strengthen communities, and foster greater mutual understanding for generations to come.
Join us in celebrating CIEE's 80th Anniversary by making a real-world impact. Visit ciee.org/80.