Betty Cortina

About Betty

• Parents were immigrants from Cuba; she was the first person in her family born on American soil.
• Learned work ethic from parents: father lied, said he could drive a forklift so he could get his first job in America, mom worked graveyard shifts.
• Her family didn't want her to work, go to college; tradition ruled she'd live with her family until she married.
• Had to apply to universities, jobs in secret; got into the University of Florida, her hometown newspaper gave her a full scholarship.
• After college, worked as a crime and politics reporter for the Miami Herald.
• Realized she was only doing newspaper journalism because it'd look good on her résumé; really wanted to work in magazines.
• Co-workers were telling her that if she left newspapers for magazines, no one take her seriously.
• Worked on "high-profile" jobs, like People en Español, but left to work at Latina, a small-scale magazine that she loved.