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I’ve been a Bruin since birth, literally! I was born on September 10th, 1990, at UCLA Medical Center to two immigrants, who through hard work and dedication, beat the odds and established themselves in this country. My mother immigrated from El Salvador at the age of 10. Her family fled El Salvador during the civil war and took refuge in New York where some of her family members had already fled. My father immigrated from Mexico at the age of 25 in pursuit of greater opportunities. Much, if not all, of my academic success, is due to their example of determination. They instilled values that allowed me to face challenges that arose while in pursuit of higher education.
Throughout my early years of education, I was a “C” student. This was mainly because I would do the bare minimum in school. In the classes I did best in, the teachers went out of the way to build an authentic relationship with me beyond the classroom walls. They would come to my sporting games or allow me and some of my classmates to play games in their class during breaks. In the classroom, they acknowledged and incorporated my interests into our lessons. They still check in on me to this day.
Unfortunately, that didn’t happen quite often. When I started high school, I had the opportunity to choose between two magnet programs. I could either be in the Police Academy Program or the Law and Government program at James Monroe High School. The James Monroe High School Police Academy Magnet is designed to prepare students for a career in law enforcement through an academically and physically rigorous career pathway education. As an athlete, I was attracted to the Police Academy because of the regular exercise they would do. The program, highly influenced by law enforcement, had a boarding school style approach. Although I needed structure, I was consistently reprimanded because I didn’t completely conform to the program's norms. I remember being told that they were being hard on me because I was seen as a leader. I was never motivated or had the motivation to do more than the bare minimum to graduate from the program. Reflecting on why, I now realize that I never gave more effort because the expectations weren’t reflective of my identity and culture. For instance, my hair had to be cut to an appropriate length and style which I had no input on. I had to respond to authority figures in a specific way and my language was considered unacceptable. My interests were never incorporated into my learning experience. This program challenged me to conform to a law enforcement culture. These experiences shaped my strong belief in creating a culture of care as a teacher and as a leader.
As a freshman in my undergrad program, not knowing what I wanted to do in life, I lost my motivation and focus and allowed my grades to plummet. I had no interest in the courses I was taking because they were geared toward the medical field. My dad encouraged me to pursue a career in radiology because he worked in the medical field. This decision ultimately disqualified me from California State University, Northridge. During this disappointing time in my life, I found a part-time job as an after-school sports coach. I quickly realized my love for educating children and sharing my love for sports with them. This passion motivated me to become an educator. It was a difficult road, but I was determined. Thanks to the Community College system and my sheer determination, I managed to work my way back into the Cal State system and got into California State University, Bakersfield. This commitment paid off and I became the first member of my family to earn a Bachelor’s degree. Upon returning home, I quickly pursued a Teaching Credential from National University and simultaneously earned a Master’s Degree in Educational Technology.
Throughout my schooling, I attended schools in low socioeconomic areas around the San Fernando Valley because I lived in the community. As a teacher, I worked in the same communities because they were areas I grew up in and connected with my identity. My experience as a student and teacher opened my eyes to the inequities that exist in education. Some of these include: the lack of support provided for families that can’t be as physically and academically involved in their child’s school experience, enrichment classes were nonexistent in many schools, and children of migrant farmworkers experiencing extremely difficult living situations impacting their ability to learn and engage. In reflection, I realized that I too had experienced some of these same inequities because of where I grew up. While I had parents that could support me, many of my neighbors ended up in gangs and dropped out of school.
These experiences have led me to actively focus on supporting groups that have been historically underrepresented. As a teacher, I used DonorsChoose to make sure my students had all the necessary materials they needed to be successful in class, as well as books, PE equipment, technology, and field trips. I helped start a pantry at our school for our homeless population to provide food and essentials. I also founded technology and robotics clubs after-school for exposure and safety for my students as well as facilitated parent workshops.
Today, I am the Assistant Principal of instruction and Social-Emotional Development at Citizens of the World, West valley. As the AP, I am responsible for hiring staff members, coaching staff, working alongside parents, leading committees, teaching children, and establishing and maintaining a positive, joyous, equitable, diverse, and anti-racist school culture. I chose to work at this work site because of the strong leadership and focus on social justice. The school is currently led by Jennifer Mansfield, a PLI Alumni. Her distributive leadership approach and encouragement of staff members to lead based on their strengths is a major reason for my decision to join this site. I was extremely impressed with her desire to address inequities in the school system. I also chose this site because of its focus on SEL. I was impressed with the organization's commitment to SEL instruction.
As a mentor, Jennifer encouraged me to apply for the Principal’s Leadership Institute at UCLA. The program has helped me develop my vision as a social justice leader and identify my theoretical learning approach. I now understand that they both play a vital role in how I best support the teaching and learning that is expected in our schools to promote equity and academic opportunity. During this process, I have learned that my vision is to be an equity-driven social justice leader. I believe I can achieve that by creating a community of care amongst parents, students, and staff that promotes radical collaboration. I believe that we are stronger and better as a community. Through a distributive leadership approach, I want to use my community members' strengths and expertise and create opportunities for them to use them in roles that improve our communities school experience. I want to challenge and create spaces for them to look at historically systemic racist systems and disrupt them by collaboratively reimagining and designing new structures. I want to create a school culture that makes everyone in my community feel seen, heard, and represented.
My vision has been shaped and molded by my identity, as the son of two immigrants. Through them, I have learned how creating a community of care pushes everyone forward. My vision has also been shaped by my experiences in education as a student and educator. Working in and being educated in low socioeconomic areas have led me to actively focus on supporting groups that have been historically underrepresented. As a student, I never saw my culture in the books and curriculums we used. As an educator, I was able to see how the policies in our school system deliberately marginalize students of color in the form of the school-to-prison pipeline, how students' spirits and culture are murdered to fit a white-supremacist culture.
Through my experiences, I’ve learned that I have the power and ability to create more equitable school experiences for all students, no matter what community or background they come from or the current hardships they may be facing. I strive to develop equitable opportunities for all the children and families I work with, regardless of their socioeconomic status, ethnicity, cognitive and physical ability levels, and access. Through the PLI program, I have learned to identify my own theoretical learning approach. My belief in Community tells me that the learning theory that resonates with me most is the Socio-Cultural Theory. This style of learning lends itself very well to gaining buy-in from all stakeholders. The Socio-Cultural Theory acknowledges that every member of the school community brings expertise to the table through their unique identities and positionally, and values their knowledge. It encourages social interactions and culturally organized activities that shape development. It allows people to make meaning through their apprenticeship and participation and transforms their mindset in the process.
My goal as a school leader is to use this learning theory in my professional development approach. I completely believe that meaningful learning occurs when staff engages in dialogue that addresses their own situated problems of practice. I will create opportunities for them to be empowered agents of change. In my role, I have been given the opportunity to identify problems at our school and address them. I have assembled a Student Culture team that is creating a community of care to address student behavior in a restorative way.
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