Inspired by her sister’s recovery, Carmencita Rosales ’20 discovered her passion for storytelling at Elon and turned it into a thriving career as a bilingual journalist and TV host. From launching WSOE’s first Spanish-language show to creating Tu Cita con Carmencita, she brings energy, resilience and representation to every story she tells.
When her older sister, Gabriela Rosales ’20, was recovering at WakeMed after being struck by a car in 2015, Carmencita Rosales ’20 improvised a bedside show to lift spirits. “I could see her mood change every time. I understood then: if I’m on camera, I want to transmit that energy to people who need it.”
That spark, born in a hospital room and cultivated at Elon, now powers Rosales’ work as a bilingual journalist, TV host and content creator traveling to red carpets and fashion weeks across Latin America and the U.S.
In early 2025, she checked off two vision-board moments: New York Fashion Week and Premio Lo Nuestro, an awards show honoring the best of Latin music. “Stepping out of the car and seeing the cameras, the fans, I thought, this is real,” she said.
Elon felt like home from the start, Rosales says, even before she enrolled, when her family visited campus during her sister’s recovery. The support continued when she arrived as a student. “El Centro was my support system,” she said, adding that staff like Sylvia Muñoz and Diana Prieto were family. She also credits the Center for Race, Ethnicity & Diversity Education (CREDE) and the daily kindness of dining staff who “checked on me, cheered me on, and made campus feel like home.”
She entered as a cinema and television arts major but quickly gravitated toward being on-air. A friend encouraged her to try ETalk, the student-run TV show. “There was a spark when I saw the host,” she said. “They brought so much magic to the table. I thought, ‘Why don’t I do that?’.”
Another nudge led her to WSOE, where she launched the station’s first Spanish-language radio program, Tu Cita Favorita, a weekly hour of entertainment news and music. “It was just me, myself and I, talking about what I loved,” Rosales said. “I wanted the Burlington community to hear Spanish on air.”
Faculty mentors helped her embrace bilingual storytelling. Professor Anthony Hatcher “showed me not to be afraid of speaking Spanish in journalism, or of my accent,” she said.
Professor Kelly Furnas remembers the purpose behind her early assignments.
“Beyond energy, engagement and work ethic, she brought a sense of purpose to her writing,” Furnas said.
Professor Alex Luchsinger also noticed a “lightbulb moment” as Rosales leaned into reporting on Nicaragua and Latin America. “Her background and skillset put her in a good position to do this,” Luchsinger said.
A pivotal moment came when Maity Interiano ’07, a Univision host and Elon alumna, returned to campus. While on campus, Rosales asked her for advice.
“Maity says people come to TV for three things: fame, a voice or to do what they love,” Rosales recalled. “I realized I want to entertain and inform, to be that spark for someone having a hard day.”
After four years of storytelling and growth, she was ready to take that energy into the professional world. Graduating into the 2020 pandemic, however, meant rescinded offers and a frozen job market. Rosales returned to Managua and pitched a morning segment to the national station, VosTV. The show, Tu Cita con Carmencita, began as a 15-minute feature twice a week. “I had no professional camera, just my phone and a lot of ganas (enthusiasm),” she said.
Then came a turning point. In February 2022, as her grandmother’s health declined, sponsors abruptly pulled out of the show.
“Within two days, about 15 brands said they couldn’t continue,” Rosales said. That same weekend, an international fashion invitation landed in her inbox. “It felt like a sign,” she said.
After her grandmother passed on Feb. 14, “her favorite date,” Rosales thanked viewers on live TV and announced it would be her last episode on the channel. “I took the invitation and went independent.”
Since then, Rosales has covered Miss Nicaragua and Latin American fashion weeks, and booked U.S. commercial work, all while growing Tu Cita con Carmencita as her own platform. She has also explored acting, including a role on a Telemundo project titled Velvet: El Nuevo Imperio.
“Being on set felt like home,” she said.
She took acting and special-effects classes at Elon and hopes to keep that door open. Rosales is passionate about creating greater visibility for Hispanic journalists and TV hosts in the U.S. entertainment industry. She hopes her work helps open doors for others who share her background.
“I want young viewers, especially girls across Latin America, to see that their dreams are possible,” she said. “You have to believe in yourself and follow your heart.”
She also measures success differently now.
“Before Elon, I thought success was just making it,” she said. “Today, success is being at peace with where you are on the journey. As a Phoenix, we rise, no matter how many times we fall.”
Rosales keeps Elon close to her heart. As a student, she often walked through the School of Communications’ ‘Wall of Fame’ for inspiration, reminding herself that the people on those walls once stood where she was.
“I used to look at those photos and think, one day, I want a Latina student to see my picture and believe it’s possible,” she said. Now, she hopes current students do the same, finding motivation in the stories of those who came before them.
She hopes to return to campus to speak with students and partner with Latin organizations.
Her advice to current Phoenix: “You don’t have to know your path as a first-year. Try everything. Walk the ‘Wall of Fame’ and see yourself there. Those four years are hard, and they shape you,” she said.
And for anyone navigating setbacks, she offers the same encouragement she once gave her sister from a hospital bedside: “Keep going. Little signs will tell you you’re on the right track, and the yeses always come.”
Do you know an alum who has an interesting story to tell, maybe even yourself? Please feel free to share those stories online.