Season 2, Episode 5: Nuestra Comunidad (Our Community)
We’re focusing on centering Latinx teachers in order to break down barriers to educational opportunities.
Air Date: February 28, 2023
Host Jonathan Santos Silva speaks with Amanda Fernandez, CEO and Founder of Latinos for Education (L4E) in Boston, MA, and Jay Alvarez, a high school educator in Houston, TX, and participant in L4E’s Latinx Teachers’ Fellowship, about the impact of increasing opportunities for Latinx educators.
As the first Latinx-founded and led nonprofit dedicated to creating leadership pathways for emerging Latinx leaders, Latinos for Education is committed to building an ecosystem of Latinx advocates by infusing Latinx talent into positions of influence. By developing, placing, and connecting essential Latinx leaders in the education sector, L4E strives to break down barriers to educational opportunities for the next generation of Latinx students.
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EPISODE TITLE:
Nuestra Comunidad (Our Community): Elevating BIPOC Educators (S2)
EPISODE DESCRIPTION:
Host Jonathan Santos Silva speaks with Amanda Fernandez, CEO and Founder of Latinos for Education (L4E) in Boston, MA, and Jay Alvarez, a high school educator in Houston, TX, and participant in L4E’s Latinx Teachers’ Fellowship, about the impact of increasing opportunities for Latinx educators.
As the first Latinx-founded and led nonprofit dedicated to creating leadership pathways for emerging Latinx leaders, Latinos for Education is committed to building an ecosystem of Latinx advocates by infusing Latinx talent into positions of influence. By developing, placing, and connecting essential Latinx leaders in the education sector, L4E strives to break down barriers to educational opportunities for the next generation of Latinx students.
Changing Course is a podcast from Teach For America's One Day Studio.
PUBLISH DATE: February 28, 2023
EPISODE #: 205
Jonathan Santos Silva, Host (00:00):
According to a tool created by the Education Trust, 1 in 10 Latinx students attend a school without a single Latinx teacher. And I have a theory why that's the case for many immigrant or first generation American communities. Proven pathways to success include becoming a doctor, lawyer, or an engineer. Teaching, on the other hand, isn't often seen as a viable pathway to build wealth or support a family. Today we're talking to a nonprofit that is working to create opportunities in education for Latinx leaders and making that pathway a lot clearer.
Amanda Fernandez, Guest (00:41):
Because of our demographic size, you can't not pay attention to Latinos anymore. And for far too long, we were just an afterthought and we still are missing from far too many tables. But my belief is that Latinos for Education will play a significant role in really expanding those tables and really expanding the message of wanting to remove those barriers to educational opportunity for Latino children, but ultimately all children who don't benefit from the education that they should be afforded
Jonathan (01:20):
From Teach for America's one day studio. You're listening to Changing Course. I'm Jonathan Santo Silva, A 2010 Teach for America alum on the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota. And since leaving the classroom, I haven't stopped partnering with educators, students, and communities to reimagine education. This season we're talking to innovative nonprofits from across the country that are committed to attracting training and retaining iPOC educators and providing opportunities where they can flourish. We have so much to learn from leaders across America, moving education in a new direction, and a change in course will happen. One school at a time.
(02:10)
Latinos for Education or L four E is the first Latinx founded and led national nonprofit solely dedicated to creating leadership pathways for emerging Latinx educators. Founded in 2015 with the mission to develop place and connect essential Latinx leadership in the education sector. L for E believes that Latinx leaders should be at the forefront of creating an equitable education for Latinx students. L for E prepares Latinx educators to break down barriers in educational opportunity by diversifying education, nonprofit boards and equipping leaders to engage in advocacy in their school systems and local communities, as well as on a national level testifying before Congress for changes in legislation by prioritizing activating Latinx voices through advocacy. L four E helps accelerate Latinx leadership and develop policies that positively impact the next generation of Latinx students. Today on changing course, we'll look at how Latinos for Education is creating leadership pathways and support systems for emerging Latinx leaders and increased access to professional opportunities in the field. Let's hear from our guests starting with Amanda Fernandez, c e o, and founder of Latinos for Education.
Amanda (03:38):
I'm Amanda Fernandez and I define myself as an advocate for Latino children and families. I define myself as a mother, as a spouse, as a friend, and as a female Latina, trying to make things happen in society in my own small way and contribute in ways that I never thought I could. I'm a first generation Latina. My family came here from Guba in 1960, and I'm in this work in large part to my parents and the struggle that they went through La Lucha, as we say in our Latino culture.
Jonathan (04:23):
For over 25 years, Amanda has worked to combat educational disparities. Her passion for this work truly began in her childhood home where she witnessed two very different scholastic trajectories.
Amanda (04:36):
My mother did not receive more than uh, a high school diploma, and my father was able to pursue his education again as he got to the United States. And what was so interesting is my mother for 30 years ended up in the dormitories in the kitchens of the dormitories on the college campus and the town where I grew up, Inga, she was cutting lettuce, preparing salads, preparing food for the students. And my father became a Spanish professor and taught for 30 years on that very same campus. They had really different experiences and I saw that growing up in my own home of what it means when one parent is educated and the other is not able to pursue their education. And yet I never thought one was more intelligent than the other. I'll tell you that much. What [inaudible] <laugh> knew what was up. Yep. My mom knew what was up.
Jonathan (05:38):
For many immigrant families, education is often seen as the great equalizer or the key to success. But Amanda says her own school experiences came with some challenges.
Amanda (05:49):
I was a good student up until middle school. And then in high school I took a pretty significant dip. And I believe now it was because I really needed much more support as a student. Um, I didn't connect as well to many of my courses and didn't have the sort of home supports or other types of supports to excel. And I became disaffected for a period of time in my, in my studies and did not feel, uh, like I really understood the value of the education I was getting. I kind of just got through and I ended up in community college for a period of time. And then I did come back to the university in the town that my parents lived in and where I grew up and did end up going to school there. I saw that I could excel quite a bit in classes that I really cared about. So I kind of see this thread that in my life that when there are things that I really care about, like, like I, you can't really stop me cuz I get really focused on what I wanna achieve.
Jonathan (07:06):
After graduating from college, Amanda secured a coveted corporate role that eventually led to her life-changing work and diversity, equity and inclusion. By 2001, Amanda was living and working in the heart of New York City. She was on the partner track at her company, but shortly after, she experienced a profound shift in her value system.
Amanda (07:27):
My office was at the World Financial Center. It was right across the street from the Twin Towers. And while I was not at the office on that day, many of my colleagues were, and I lived in Manhattan. So I experienced the aftermath for many, many months after that really made me take a pause. It was profound. The grief in Manhattan. They moved us to an office on Wall Street, and every day I smelled burned metal and just the smell of frankly death. It was awful. And I had to soul search quite a bit to say, what am I doing? And it really was a profound time in my life to make some changes. So I did that. I made some changes, I changed sectors. And I'll never forget, I was at a nonprofit consulting firm. And so I started looking at all the data on Latino student outcomes. And I was shocked. I did volunteer work and things like that, but did not really understand the scale of how Latino children were not achieving the educational access they deserve.
Jonathan (08:54):
As she discovered barriers for Latinx students, Amanda started to recognize the challenges she experienced in her own life. While pursuing her mba, Amanda realized that the promise of am meritocracy, if you work hard to be successful, had some cracks in it. There were some barriers that could not be overcome with effort. Despite her hard work, in many ways, she still felt behind.
Amanda (09:21):
I felt like I had to keep trying to prove myself and feel like I could fit in amongst these peers who had MBAs from all the top schools across the country. Which by the way, at that time I didn't know what half those schools were. I just knew I had to at least in my mind, measure up somehow. I had always been sort of this person who believed in justice and fairness. I grew up believing that I grew up believing in meritocracy that if you work hard, you'll succeed. And in my case I did. But I realized that that's not actually the case. For most kids that grow up in low income households, they don't have that opportunity. And even when they work hard, they don't. Hmm. So that brought me to Teach For America. I'd never heard of Teach for America. I was an experienced hire.
(10:14)
I did not know anything about the core. I was really impressed with the vision and the mission of the organization. And because of my prior experience doing diversity work, I knew how important it was to have people who represent our communities and our backgrounds represented, whether it's in our organizations, our companies, our classrooms, our boardrooms. And I had had a background in a lot of my work in the past on human capital, on this idea of how do we unleash the talents of all individuals regardless of their race or ethnicity. And I was able to bring that background and experience to bear during my time at Teach for America. So I was brought in to lead Latino external engagement. It was a new role that had been created at Teach for America. And so I was basically trailblazing what would be the work of Latino engagement at Teach for America.
Jonathan (11:27):
In addition to pioneering Latinx engagement at Teach for America, Amanda and her team at Alpha E now partner with TFAs Latinx Alliances to provide access insights, resources and leadership development that helped Latinx educators thrive in the profession of choice.
Amanda (11:46):
There were so many amazing Latinos <laugh> that were defying their families and saying, I'm gonna go teach in the classroom. <laugh> and their families saying [inaudible] like, what are you thinking? Because right, you went to college and you need to be literally the traditional jobs that our families only know, which is a doctor, a lawyer, or in business. Right? Right.
(12:15)
<laugh>. Those were the only options. And I encountered so many, so many Latinos within Teach for America on staff, and then more broadly who were teachers who were in the core. And I was just so inspired, was so inspired by those decisions that they made to really ensure that those behind them, that students behind them would have the same opportunities that they did. And that by standing in front of the classroom, our students could be what they could see. Mm-hmm. <affirmative>. During my time at T F A, I was able to support and lead a lot of the efforts in recruiting more documented young people to the core. And it was during my time there that we really got it off the ground. And that was one of the most impactful, those stories of our DACAmented teachers in front of children in their classrooms who were undocumented and undocumented kids being able to see a real role model and that they could make it. Now it's about to be one in three. And yet we haven't kept PACE as a country in increasing that representation, which we all know is super important for our students
Jonathan (13:43):
Every day. So many young Latinx students navigate the K-12 system with teachers who have good intentions but can't fully understand their unique journey because they have not personally navigated that path. There is profound power in representation and seeing someone in the building who looks like you and Amanda believes there's even more power in professional mentorship to launch Latinx teachers into meaningful leadership positions.
Amanda (14:12):
When I started to talk with Latinos in education who I would ask about their own leadership pathways and sort of where they wanted to be, I heard so consistently that it wasn't a matter of not wanting to be in leadership roles in education. It was a matter of knowing how. Because guess what? So often we had to navigate our own paths, even though we got a college education. And for a lot of you got into the teaching core and made it, but you still need the support, you still need the mentorship, you still need the professional development to put you on the path to continue if that's what you choose to do, to pursue other positions in education that have broader decision making or influence. And so that's the gap that I saw across the country was we just didn't have enough educators and then we didn't have enough leaders that were advancing or being brought into the teaching profession at the rate of growth that our Latino population was growing. So I founded Latinos for Education back in 2015 and I started it by quitting my job.
Jonathan (15:37):
<laugh>. I'm sure your parents were really excited for that, right?
Amanda (15:40):
Weren't they though? And And my spouse even more so <laugh>. So I developed the strategic plan that was to be Latinos for Education, where our mission is to develop, place and connect essential Latino leadership in the education sector. And we've kept with that mission several years later and we've now added a component that is about accelerating leadership while also advocating for and developing policies to remove barriers to educational opportunity. Because I, I knew even when I put the plan together back in 2015, it wasn't just about developing leaders and accelerating their leadership, that it was also about activating their voice and engaging them in the advocacy. Whether it was small, a advocacy in your school setting or whether it was testifying before Congress. Mm-hmm. <affirmative> or your legislature.
Jonathan (16:40):
Latinos for Education's signature program is the aspiring Latino Leadership Fellowship, which runs for about eight to 10 months around the school's calendar year. The program was designed for Latinx leaders with about five to seven years of work experience.
Amanda (16:57):
I focused on that particular sort of age range and level of experience because we wanted to get a large swath of Latinos who were sort of at the precipice of wanting to accelerate leadership and didn't know how. And so, uh, we did focus groups all across the country. We identified what were the barriers, what were the things holding people back from pursuing higher positions in education and through those focus groups. And we did other work, evidence-based practice work to kind of bring together what the programming would be. But what was really important to me at the onset was to ensure that we started with the very important work of identity development because so many of us had not unpacked our own and sort of what that meant relative to being in the classroom and doing the work and education. And so a core tenant of our fellowship is working on the Marshall Gantz framework of Public Narrative.
Jonathan (18:10):
Marshall Ganza Theory of Public Narrative is a framework that guides participants through a series of identity-based prompts. Practices include telling a story of self, which allows others to get you a story of us, which enables your community to get each other. And a story of now which transforms the present moment into one of challenge, hope, and action by promoting mutual understanding. This powerful tool strengthens leadership capacity, engages empathy, and enables participants to respond to unique challenges related to loss, difference and power.
Amanda (18:51):
And that was really important that we centered most of our programming around that identity development. And the other piece was to bring together folks from different parts of the sector in the local setting that we were doing these fellowships in, because I believe there was too much division in education. And I believe that not enough people understand other roles that are important in the ecosystem to actually influence and impact better outcomes for kids and how much integration there has to be. So we had folks coming from different backgrounds, different roles. We had charter school leaders, we had union representatives, we had people that worked in nonprofits that worked in central office and school districts. That was intentional in terms of sort of who we brought together in our fellowships. The most profound experience for our folks going through that program is the identity development piece and then also these really important networks that they develop and then continue to have as they progress in their careers. And how that leads to so many opportunities for folks and connections that so often Latinos are left out of. We create our own networks and create our own possibilities, which is pretty exciting
Jonathan (20:18):
Since launching in 2015. Latinos for Education now has over 500 people attending their programs across the country and places including Massachusetts, the Bay Area, and California and Houston, Texas. The organization connects Latinx educators across the country online too.
Amanda (20:37):
Ed Centro is our own version of a LinkedIn for Latino educators and we have job postings there, but we also do a lot of professional development and other programming. It's an opportunity for folks to identify like-minded people, mentors, connections. And so we have almost 4,000 Latinos in that network across the country. Wow. We have the Latino Board Fellowship, which is to include Latinos from outside of education in the education sector by serving on education, nonprofit boards of directors. So we're really trying to get all kinds of folks involved in the ecosystem. We launched a Latino teacher fellowship recently because we were really concerned about retention of Latino educators. As you know, as we all know, Latino and black teachers leave at much higher rates and around the fourth year is usually a tipping point. So we wanted to focus on Latinx teachers through our, our fellowship. And then most recently we launched Familia Latinas in Houston as a pilot because we were finding that our Spanish speaking families, no surprise, were left out, left without a seat at the table in their own school districts and in their own schools. And so we've launched a fellowship that's done completely in Spanish to activate our parents to be the most important advocates that can exist, which are parents and families on behalf of their kids. So kind of what do we think about? These are all roles that have direct impact on student outcome.
Jonathan (22:26):
Most recently through their policy and advocacy work, Latinos for Education, marshaled support for the Educator Diversity Act in Massachusetts, the first legislation of its kind in the state that is directly focused on removing recruiting and retention barriers for educators of color.
Amanda (22:44):
We talk a lot about those barriers, but you don't see as many states really engaged in policy making around removing those barriers. So I'm really proud of this legislation. I believe we're one of the few states across the country that has a bill of this kind. And that is just another way in which we are building the ecosystem of advocates for Latino children, but all low income children. And so our network just keeps expanding as a result. And that is the goal is to really put Latino education, Latino education issues out into the universe because of our demographic size. You can't not pay attention to Latinos anymore. And for far too long we were just an afterthought and we still are missing from far too many tables. But my belief is that Latinos for Education will play a significant role in really expanding those tables and really expanding the message of wanting to remove those barriers to educational opportunity for Latino children. But ultimately all, all children who don't benefit from the education that they should be afforded.
Jonathan (24:08):
After the break, we'll continue our conversation with an educator who has participated in one of Latinos for Education's programs. But first we wanted to hear from students across the country who are being impacted by teachers who share aspects of their identities throughout this season. We'll be lifting up the voices of students of color as they reflect on their experiences. Here are Carmen, Emily, nada, and Elizabeth, eighth graders from East Las Vegas, reflecting on their experience having Latinx teachers.
Carmen, (Voice Memo) (24:43):
Hi, my name is Carmen. Hi, my name is Emeli. I identify as Latina. In this school year, I have three teachers that identify as Latinas. The impact my teachers have had on me is positive. For example, I have good communication with them and because I feel like I work better with them instead of of this teachers At my school, we have a class advisor who is Latina. She's in charge of a whole grade. This is very important for me because it's detailing a Latina woman, being independent and having power, power over a big group of people and something I inspire and and impacts me in a very positive way. I hope I can keep having Latinas in high school because it makes me feel welcome and comfortable. Whenever I work with teachers who don't show my identity, I feel like they don't really understand what I'm saying and they don't have the best communication with me with other teachers that show my identity. This is important to me because the teachers that have my identity get to understand me more when I'm having trouble explaining it. Also, because I can go with them no matter what and I can also trust them.
Jonathan (25:59):
Next up is Nata Garcia from Canyon Springs High School in Las Vegas, Nevada. Here Nada discusses the impact her teacher Ms. Santa Maria has had on her school experience.
Nata Garcia, (Voice Memo) (26:12):
Hi, I'm Nata Garcia. During my everyday life, I identify as Mexican-American because both my parents are Mexican. They were born in Mexico, but I was born in the United States. Hispanic kids and our communities sometimes are discriminated against. So I feel like you understand like the struggles of growing up as a Hispanic kid and having you as my teacher has made it easier because I feel like you understand me and like you know how to communicate with me and the rest of us Hispanic kids. I think it's important to have all different kinds of teachers because there's many different kinds of students in every school. So I feel like there should be teachers that represent everyone, you know, to make everyone feel comfortable while in school, learning in school.
Jonathan (26:57):
Last but not least, here's Elizabeth sharing in her native tongue about the impact of her teacher. Ms. Aguilar, one of the few Latinx teachers she's had throughout the years.
Elizabeth, (Voice Memo) (27:06):
Mi nombre es Elizabeth y me identifico como hispano. Tengo una maestra con la que me identifico, es Ms.Aquilar porque es una maestra de las pocas que tenemos aquí que son hispanos, entienden nuestro idioma, entienden nuestros chistes.
(27:06)
[My name is Elizabeth and I identify as Hispanic. I have a teacher who identifies like me, Ms. Aguilar. She is one of the few teachers we have here that is Hispanic. She understands our language. She understands our jokes]
Jonathan (27:21):
As one of the few Latinx teachers Elizabeth has had. She says Ms. Aguilar has helped her feel understood whether it's understanding her jokes or her language
Elizabeth (27:30):
Ms.Aquilar es una persona que me ha ayudado bastante con el tema del idioma. Cuando yo llegué aquí no sabía casi nada. Ella me ha ayudado a avanzar en ese aspecto del idioma.
(27:30)
[Ms. Aguilar is someone who has helped me a lot with learning English. When I arrived here, I knew almost notohing. She has helped me improve.]
Jonathan (27:43):
In addition to helping Elizabeth improve her English over the years, Elizabeth says Ms. Aguilar helped her seek college as a priceless opportunity.
Elizabeth (27:51):
los años pasados de no querer al college, ella me hizo entender que ir a la universidad es un gran paso para un gran futuro.
(27:51)
years ago, I didn’t want to go to college. But she made me understand that going to college is a great step towards a great future.]
Jonathan (28:09):
As we mentioned earlier, Latinos for Education's impact now expands beyond the borders of Massachusetts. Let's meet our next guest, Jay Alvarez and educator based in Houston, Texas. Jay was a participant in Latinos for Educations, Latinx Teachers Fellowship in 2022.
Jay Alvarez, Guest (28:28):
My name is Jay Alvarez. Currently I am a high school graduation coach, which pretty much means that I work primarily with high school students who are seniors who are labeled or defined as at risk of not graduating with their classes. So my main task is to make sure they're coming to school, doing their work, passing their classes, all of those things pretty much as the title says, a coach to coach them to make sure that they're doing what they need to do to be successful and graduate on time with their cohort.
Jonathan (29:00):
Prior to being promoted to a coach, Jay taught Spanish for five years in Houston's independent school district.
Jay (29:07):
I've done everything from basic Spanish one, uh, advanced placement, AP Spanish. So, um, I really enjoyed that. I'm really big about students. I definitely feel like a lot of my students feel and I think that's why I kind of relate to them so much. Cause I tell 'em, I'm like, I'm not that old y'all. It's not been that so long since I've <laugh> since I've been in high school. And it, it kinda like when I see different situations, it reminds me of things like that happened maybe with me or similar situations that I saw happen when I was in high school. It's kinda a little bit different from me because I came from a state that's not very diverse at all. So it was a lot of things that were going on around me that I guess teachers didn't understand or didn't care to understand. Um, not saying that I didn't have good teachers, but I didn't have teachers that kind of made it their business.
(29:53)
To know more about Jay to get to know what's going on with Jay outside the classroom. It's kind of like, well if you're not, you know, if you're not a behavioral problem, if you're coming to school, if you're doing what you're supposed to do, like they don't, you know, you're okay. Mm-hmm. <affirmative>. So I think that that's a part that I wish I did have. One of the reasons why I decided to um, embark on my unity with the group of Latinos for education. Cause I'm very passionate about helping, you know, specifically minority students as well. The school that I currently work at is about 86% Latino. We're about 95% minority. So we have a huge minority population that we serve here. So, um, again, I have many different hats that I have to wear on my campus in order to, to make sure that the students needs are being met and that I can make sure that they're being successful in doing what they need to do.
Jonathan (30:41):
You said minority, but it's like 95% of the school they're, they're not the minority, at least at school.
Jay (30:46):
Yeah. Yeah. Definitely not here. <laugh>
Jonathan (30:48):
For Jay, some of the disconnect that happens in the classroom isn't just related to training or behavioral issues, it's cultural.
Jay (30:57):
Some of our teachers, they're not equipped to work with minority students in general. Things that would be considered a behavioral problem for them is generally not considered a behavioral problem for me is some cultural aspects that some teachers don't understand or not trained on. And I think that's partially it, that they don't understand the cultural aspect of being minority, whether it's Latino or African American, Asian. It's just those different cultural things. I think it's a lack of understanding. Like for example, something simple as, you know, a student coming used to school, you know, 10 minutes late or something, they're late to class. And then, you know, when you finally talk to that student, you don't know that that student has four little brothers that he has to take to school. You don't know that he worked all last night with his dad doing construction or whatever the things may be.
(31:44)
So it's like you over here yelling at him about being 10 minutes late when you have, you know, some students who on the other side who may have you know you, like I said, you pretty much always say this to my students. You never know what somebody's going through at home or what their situation is. So if we're more kind of understanding of that, it could really like change a lot of things. Cause students don't wanna hear you coming in, you know, yelling at 'em about being 10 minutes late when, you know, they tried to get here, they had to fix breakfast, they had to work out last night, they had to drop three brothers off at three different schools. Now they're trying to come to school and like I hear a teacher over there yelling about not having a pencil. Like hmm. You know, like it's just kind of like, you know, it's just kind of things like that that really kind of irritate me. And a lot of those, they'll come to my room now cuz again, we've developed that relationship and they'll be like, why? You know, why can't more teachers be like, why can't they be understanding of, you know, different situations for different people.
Jonathan (32:34):
Like we've been hearing all season long, the relationships teachers build with their students is crucial. Students have to know you care.
Jay (32:42):
The one point the school asked me to do like a PD on like building relationships and do that and I was like, it's very hard to teach someone you know, to care about <laugh>. You know what your students are going through. You're an educator. I'm like, how do I teach you? Like, hey, like talk to your students. Get to know them. Like, so I feel like if just more teachers just kind of took the time and don't think that, you know, cuz some will say that some like, well it's not in my job description to get to know the students. It's not like I, I just need to teach grade and go home. You know, so mm-hmm. <affirmative>, when you have educators that have that type of mindset, it's gonna be very, they're they are, they are gonna struggle. Especially in a school like mine.
Jonathan (33:15):
When Jay connected with Latinos for Education, the nonprofit's emphasis on honoring Latinx culture and relationship building were two key elements that stood out and had a huge impact on him professionally. And Alfred e he found the motivation to keep going and try new ideas, to close graduation gaps.
Jay (33:35):
The main thing that kind of helped me was to know that I wasn't in the work alone. Sometimes you feel like, you know, you're the only one trying to make this big impact. And then it's kind of difficult too when you try to, you know, if I go and talk to some of my colleagues, I'm like, okay, I wanna do this for the kids, I wanna do that for the kids. And it's kind of like, oh, well that's a lot. We already have a lot on our plates, you know, we, we just need to stick to, you know, what our job description says. And, and it can kind of be very, you know, disappointing, discouraging. Especially when you have all these ideas and maybe some teachers who have different mindsets to you kind of shut that down. But when I was in this room with these educators and everybody was just really trying to do things, they were doing groups.
(34:18)
They were going out and fundraising, they were creating different programs, organizations for their students. It was such like a breath of fresh air to no. I'm like, oh wow, there's some educators really trying to go the extra mile because for everything that we have to do, sometimes it's, everything that we do do is not in our job description. So especially when we see a student's need that's not being met, we're trying to fill it. So that's really when we got together and talked in our, our sessions, which most of them were virtual, that's what we were brainstorming and talking about together. How can we help our minority students catch up with our non-minority students? What is it that they need? What can we do to fill in those gaps so that, you know, graduation rates won't be so extremely different or after college rates won't be as, as extremely different as they are now. From, you know, from the data that we explored during the different sessions.
Jonathan (35:08):
Latinos for Education was unique for Jay because it wasn't the average professional development program. It was a network and a support system. Jay says he had been through professional development programs before, but nothing quite like his experience with Latinos for Education. Once the program wrapped up, the group still kept in touch. They actually got together over the holidays not too long ago.
Jay (35:33):
I'm like, this is different. Once we had that last session, I'm thinking, okay, I got my certificate, I got the pd, I'm good. You know, good luck to everybody, but it's kind of like Latino Fred really stayed in contact with me, but I'm like, this is the first group that we've kind of continued to meet. So I'm like, okay, so this is kind of a, this is not just a a PD thing. This is more, you know, a more like a really like put together community. The directors are like constantly emailing me, Hey, how are you doing? They wanna do a book study, they want me to come talk at the conference. I didn't see the after part of it. We still kind of keep in contact and communicate on a regular basis. We meet at least a baby about once a month and just kind of, even if it's may be something that we are, we're, you know, we're trying to do in the community, I feel like having that sense of really like real community and real groups and where I can text the group chat and be like, Hey, you know guys, I'm trying to do this with my kids.
(36:24)
Did anybody know somebody that can do this or can do that? And also with those meeting greets, I'm able to meet the past people who went through the program before me. So I'm not meeting just the ones that did, you know, the ones that I went through the program with. I mean the ones who did it 5, 6, 7 years ago mm-hmm. <affirmative>, which is adding to my network. Cause now they're showing up. They said, oh, I did the program and this year I did from 2016 I did program 2017, whatever, whatever the situation may be. And now I'm able to use them as resources. So now they're saying couple, like, I met a guy at, at our Christmas party who did the Aspiring Leaders program and he said, oh yeah, I've worked for this. I do, you know this, if you need something, let me know. I'm, I'm able to get you this. I can go to these schools. Okay, where's your school at? Okay, let me get your number so I can let you know when I'm in the area. So it's just like, just I, we can send somebody to come talk to your kids about this stuff. So it's just like, I'm like, wow, like having all these resources just kind of like, just come out of nowhere. That's why I was like, oh. I was like, okay, this is, this is different. This is something I wanna make sure I stay kind of close to. You know? Yeah.
Jonathan (37:20):
<laugh>. No, that's, that's beautiful. That's really beautiful. While Jay never had a teacher who connected with him on a cultural level in grade school, he did meet a mentor in college who significantly impacted his life. Community oriented mentorship was modeled for Jay during his time in the Latinx teacher's fellowship. Today Jay continues to stress the importance of mentorship and connection to the students in his classroom.
Jay (37:45):
You need to find a mentor. You need to find somebody that's gonna, you know, have your bag tell you when you're wrong, but support you all the way. Mm. That will make your experience again, both here in high school, college, that will make your experience a hundred percent better. Yeah. Find that person in your life that you can trust to fill that role for.
Jonathan (38:03):
We know that there are many obstacles that make it difficult for Latinx leaders to enter and remain in the classroom because of this. There isn't just one thing that will break down barriers in education, but we challenged our leaders today to dream anyway. We asked them to tell us what is one thing they would address if they had a magic wand. Here are Jay and Amanda with some final thoughts.
Jay (38:30):
Oh that is, that's a, that's a very good question. <laugh>, the whole mindset of educating has to be changed cuz they don't teach you how to, you know, this student is at home, he doesn't have any lights on at his house, he's angry, he comes in or he's tired, he worked on that. He's tired. Like you have to know how to, how to kind of navigate those situations. And there's not a class on how to navigate there. There's a class on classroom management, but classroom management is kind of just a, this is a brief, you know, list of if this happens, this is what you're supposed to do. But different situations call for different things. So I just feel like having that, that way to reach students know how to reach the students as you're teaching, knowing your community, knowing who you teach and like I said, those teachers having that support system in to feel supported and helped while they're going through. Especially maybe those first three years. Cuz again, that first three to five year period is very critical. So I think if they had that support right at the beginning, we would have teachers that would stay in the profession long term.
Amanda (39:28):
The work we do is a peace and it won't change everything at the speed and rate at which we want to. I guess what comes to mind to me is we've gotta address systemic racism and education. I think that that's at the core is through policy and practices. We've gotta be honest about the structures that are impeding both our students and educators from accelerating either their education or their careers. There are just those not so hidden barriers. And I think there's just an honesty we have to have about needing to head on, call it what it is and address it.
Jonathan (40:15):
Thank you. Get involved, y'all. There's a lot of great work happening. Thank you Amanda so much. We appreciate your time, we appreciate your wisdom and your stories.
Amanda (40:24):
Thank you Jonathan.
Jonathan (40:25):
Thank you Jay. We appreciate you man. This has been so good. Thank you
Jay (40:28):
So much.
Jonathan (40:30):
Having a strong sense of community is crucial when it comes to teacher retention. For Latinx leaders, cultivating a culturally inclusive environment in the classroom not only creates a sense of belonging, but essential engagement relevant to all students. Like we've heard across the board this season of changing course, education can be a challenging field. Financial costs for licenses and low salaries make it difficult for many to remain in the classroom. And on a deeper level, systemic racism sends the message to traditionally marginalized or underrepresented teachers like Latinx leaders that they do not belong. But the relationships and networks that are built in the field help create new possibilities. We can't do this work well alone when Bipoc teachers trust that they can bring their full selves into the classroom. They are better positioned to lead and succeed and the possibilities from there are endless. That's it for this week. Thank you so much for listening to changing course from Teach for America's one day studio. I'm Jonathan Santo Silva. Peace. On our final episode of this season of Changing Course, we are looking at how Teach for America is investing in bipoc educators.
Dr. Barbara Logan Smith, Guest (41:54):
As people of color. We have been expected to be strong. Cue the trope. We have been expected to be black girl magic. Cue the trope. We've been like set up to think that we are somehow going to be superhuman. And the reality is we're actually still just people. And so how do we make what we're asking folks to do in these jobs more sustainable so that folks can actually stay in it with the help and support and guidance that they need.
Jonathan (42:21):
That's next time on Changing Course. And if you love the podcast, be sure to rate, review, and follow Changing Course on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcast.
(42:35)
Change in course is produced by Teach Four America's one day studio in partnership with pod people. Special thanks to my main man, Michael Kress, Georgia Davis, Stephanie Garcia, and Akande Simons from Teach For America and the production team at Pod People. Rachel King, Matt Sav, Aimee Machado, killer B, Bryan Rivers, Danielle Roth, two Live crew themselves, Chris Jacobs and Shaneez Tyndall and Carter Wogahn. Last but certainly not least, thank you to Carmen, Emily, Nata, and Elizabeth and Jay Alvarez and Amanda Fernandez from Latinos for Education who shared their time and experience. To help us make this episode, I'm Jonathan Santo Silva. Peace.
Nuestra Comunidad (Our Community): Elevating BIPOC Educators (S2)
EPISODE DESCRIPTION:
Host Jonathan Santos Silva speaks with Amanda Fernandez, CEO and Founder of Latinos for Education (L4E) in Boston, MA, and Jay Alvarez, a high school educator in Houston, TX, and participant in L4E’s Latinx Teachers’ Fellowship, about the impact of increasing opportunities for Latinx educators.
As the first Latinx-founded and led nonprofit dedicated to creating leadership pathways for emerging Latinx leaders, Latinos for Education is committed to building an ecosystem of Latinx advocates by infusing Latinx talent into positions of influence. By developing, placing, and connecting essential Latinx leaders in the education sector, L4E strives to break down barriers to educational opportunities for the next generation of Latinx students.
Changing Course is a podcast from Teach For America's One Day Studio.
PUBLISH DATE: February 28, 2023
EPISODE #: 205
Jonathan Santos Silva, Host (00:00):
According to a tool created by the Education Trust, 1 in 10 Latinx students attend a school without a single Latinx teacher. And I have a theory why that's the case for many immigrant or first generation American communities. Proven pathways to success include becoming a doctor, lawyer, or an engineer. Teaching, on the other hand, isn't often seen as a viable pathway to build wealth or support a family. Today we're talking to a nonprofit that is working to create opportunities in education for Latinx leaders and making that pathway a lot clearer.
Amanda Fernandez, Guest (00:41):
Because of our demographic size, you can't not pay attention to Latinos anymore. And for far too long, we were just an afterthought and we still are missing from far too many tables. But my belief is that Latinos for Education will play a significant role in really expanding those tables and really expanding the message of wanting to remove those barriers to educational opportunity for Latino children, but ultimately all children who don't benefit from the education that they should be afforded
Jonathan (01:20):
From Teach for America's one day studio. You're listening to Changing Course. I'm Jonathan Santo Silva, A 2010 Teach for America alum on the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota. And since leaving the classroom, I haven't stopped partnering with educators, students, and communities to reimagine education. This season we're talking to innovative nonprofits from across the country that are committed to attracting training and retaining iPOC educators and providing opportunities where they can flourish. We have so much to learn from leaders across America, moving education in a new direction, and a change in course will happen. One school at a time.
(02:10)
Latinos for Education or L four E is the first Latinx founded and led national nonprofit solely dedicated to creating leadership pathways for emerging Latinx educators. Founded in 2015 with the mission to develop place and connect essential Latinx leadership in the education sector. L for E believes that Latinx leaders should be at the forefront of creating an equitable education for Latinx students. L for E prepares Latinx educators to break down barriers in educational opportunity by diversifying education, nonprofit boards and equipping leaders to engage in advocacy in their school systems and local communities, as well as on a national level testifying before Congress for changes in legislation by prioritizing activating Latinx voices through advocacy. L four E helps accelerate Latinx leadership and develop policies that positively impact the next generation of Latinx students. Today on changing course, we'll look at how Latinos for Education is creating leadership pathways and support systems for emerging Latinx leaders and increased access to professional opportunities in the field. Let's hear from our guests starting with Amanda Fernandez, c e o, and founder of Latinos for Education.
Amanda (03:38):
I'm Amanda Fernandez and I define myself as an advocate for Latino children and families. I define myself as a mother, as a spouse, as a friend, and as a female Latina, trying to make things happen in society in my own small way and contribute in ways that I never thought I could. I'm a first generation Latina. My family came here from Guba in 1960, and I'm in this work in large part to my parents and the struggle that they went through La Lucha, as we say in our Latino culture.
Jonathan (04:23):
For over 25 years, Amanda has worked to combat educational disparities. Her passion for this work truly began in her childhood home where she witnessed two very different scholastic trajectories.
Amanda (04:36):
My mother did not receive more than uh, a high school diploma, and my father was able to pursue his education again as he got to the United States. And what was so interesting is my mother for 30 years ended up in the dormitories in the kitchens of the dormitories on the college campus and the town where I grew up, Inga, she was cutting lettuce, preparing salads, preparing food for the students. And my father became a Spanish professor and taught for 30 years on that very same campus. They had really different experiences and I saw that growing up in my own home of what it means when one parent is educated and the other is not able to pursue their education. And yet I never thought one was more intelligent than the other. I'll tell you that much. What [inaudible] <laugh> knew what was up. Yep. My mom knew what was up.
Jonathan (05:38):
For many immigrant families, education is often seen as the great equalizer or the key to success. But Amanda says her own school experiences came with some challenges.
Amanda (05:49):
I was a good student up until middle school. And then in high school I took a pretty significant dip. And I believe now it was because I really needed much more support as a student. Um, I didn't connect as well to many of my courses and didn't have the sort of home supports or other types of supports to excel. And I became disaffected for a period of time in my, in my studies and did not feel, uh, like I really understood the value of the education I was getting. I kind of just got through and I ended up in community college for a period of time. And then I did come back to the university in the town that my parents lived in and where I grew up and did end up going to school there. I saw that I could excel quite a bit in classes that I really cared about. So I kind of see this thread that in my life that when there are things that I really care about, like, like I, you can't really stop me cuz I get really focused on what I wanna achieve.
Jonathan (07:06):
After graduating from college, Amanda secured a coveted corporate role that eventually led to her life-changing work and diversity, equity and inclusion. By 2001, Amanda was living and working in the heart of New York City. She was on the partner track at her company, but shortly after, she experienced a profound shift in her value system.
Amanda (07:27):
My office was at the World Financial Center. It was right across the street from the Twin Towers. And while I was not at the office on that day, many of my colleagues were, and I lived in Manhattan. So I experienced the aftermath for many, many months after that really made me take a pause. It was profound. The grief in Manhattan. They moved us to an office on Wall Street, and every day I smelled burned metal and just the smell of frankly death. It was awful. And I had to soul search quite a bit to say, what am I doing? And it really was a profound time in my life to make some changes. So I did that. I made some changes, I changed sectors. And I'll never forget, I was at a nonprofit consulting firm. And so I started looking at all the data on Latino student outcomes. And I was shocked. I did volunteer work and things like that, but did not really understand the scale of how Latino children were not achieving the educational access they deserve.
Jonathan (08:54):
As she discovered barriers for Latinx students, Amanda started to recognize the challenges she experienced in her own life. While pursuing her mba, Amanda realized that the promise of am meritocracy, if you work hard to be successful, had some cracks in it. There were some barriers that could not be overcome with effort. Despite her hard work, in many ways, she still felt behind.
Amanda (09:21):
I felt like I had to keep trying to prove myself and feel like I could fit in amongst these peers who had MBAs from all the top schools across the country. Which by the way, at that time I didn't know what half those schools were. I just knew I had to at least in my mind, measure up somehow. I had always been sort of this person who believed in justice and fairness. I grew up believing that I grew up believing in meritocracy that if you work hard, you'll succeed. And in my case I did. But I realized that that's not actually the case. For most kids that grow up in low income households, they don't have that opportunity. And even when they work hard, they don't. Hmm. So that brought me to Teach For America. I'd never heard of Teach for America. I was an experienced hire.
(10:14)
I did not know anything about the core. I was really impressed with the vision and the mission of the organization. And because of my prior experience doing diversity work, I knew how important it was to have people who represent our communities and our backgrounds represented, whether it's in our organizations, our companies, our classrooms, our boardrooms. And I had had a background in a lot of my work in the past on human capital, on this idea of how do we unleash the talents of all individuals regardless of their race or ethnicity. And I was able to bring that background and experience to bear during my time at Teach for America. So I was brought in to lead Latino external engagement. It was a new role that had been created at Teach for America. And so I was basically trailblazing what would be the work of Latino engagement at Teach for America.
Jonathan (11:27):
In addition to pioneering Latinx engagement at Teach for America, Amanda and her team at Alpha E now partner with TFAs Latinx Alliances to provide access insights, resources and leadership development that helped Latinx educators thrive in the profession of choice.
Amanda (11:46):
There were so many amazing Latinos <laugh> that were defying their families and saying, I'm gonna go teach in the classroom. <laugh> and their families saying [inaudible] like, what are you thinking? Because right, you went to college and you need to be literally the traditional jobs that our families only know, which is a doctor, a lawyer, or in business. Right? Right.
(12:15)
<laugh>. Those were the only options. And I encountered so many, so many Latinos within Teach for America on staff, and then more broadly who were teachers who were in the core. And I was just so inspired, was so inspired by those decisions that they made to really ensure that those behind them, that students behind them would have the same opportunities that they did. And that by standing in front of the classroom, our students could be what they could see. Mm-hmm. <affirmative>. During my time at T F A, I was able to support and lead a lot of the efforts in recruiting more documented young people to the core. And it was during my time there that we really got it off the ground. And that was one of the most impactful, those stories of our DACAmented teachers in front of children in their classrooms who were undocumented and undocumented kids being able to see a real role model and that they could make it. Now it's about to be one in three. And yet we haven't kept PACE as a country in increasing that representation, which we all know is super important for our students
Jonathan (13:43):
Every day. So many young Latinx students navigate the K-12 system with teachers who have good intentions but can't fully understand their unique journey because they have not personally navigated that path. There is profound power in representation and seeing someone in the building who looks like you and Amanda believes there's even more power in professional mentorship to launch Latinx teachers into meaningful leadership positions.
Amanda (14:12):
When I started to talk with Latinos in education who I would ask about their own leadership pathways and sort of where they wanted to be, I heard so consistently that it wasn't a matter of not wanting to be in leadership roles in education. It was a matter of knowing how. Because guess what? So often we had to navigate our own paths, even though we got a college education. And for a lot of you got into the teaching core and made it, but you still need the support, you still need the mentorship, you still need the professional development to put you on the path to continue if that's what you choose to do, to pursue other positions in education that have broader decision making or influence. And so that's the gap that I saw across the country was we just didn't have enough educators and then we didn't have enough leaders that were advancing or being brought into the teaching profession at the rate of growth that our Latino population was growing. So I founded Latinos for Education back in 2015 and I started it by quitting my job.
Jonathan (15:37):
<laugh>. I'm sure your parents were really excited for that, right?
Amanda (15:40):
Weren't they though? And And my spouse even more so <laugh>. So I developed the strategic plan that was to be Latinos for Education, where our mission is to develop, place and connect essential Latino leadership in the education sector. And we've kept with that mission several years later and we've now added a component that is about accelerating leadership while also advocating for and developing policies to remove barriers to educational opportunity. Because I, I knew even when I put the plan together back in 2015, it wasn't just about developing leaders and accelerating their leadership, that it was also about activating their voice and engaging them in the advocacy. Whether it was small, a advocacy in your school setting or whether it was testifying before Congress. Mm-hmm. <affirmative> or your legislature.
Jonathan (16:40):
Latinos for Education's signature program is the aspiring Latino Leadership Fellowship, which runs for about eight to 10 months around the school's calendar year. The program was designed for Latinx leaders with about five to seven years of work experience.
Amanda (16:57):
I focused on that particular sort of age range and level of experience because we wanted to get a large swath of Latinos who were sort of at the precipice of wanting to accelerate leadership and didn't know how. And so, uh, we did focus groups all across the country. We identified what were the barriers, what were the things holding people back from pursuing higher positions in education and through those focus groups. And we did other work, evidence-based practice work to kind of bring together what the programming would be. But what was really important to me at the onset was to ensure that we started with the very important work of identity development because so many of us had not unpacked our own and sort of what that meant relative to being in the classroom and doing the work and education. And so a core tenant of our fellowship is working on the Marshall Gantz framework of Public Narrative.
Jonathan (18:10):
Marshall Ganza Theory of Public Narrative is a framework that guides participants through a series of identity-based prompts. Practices include telling a story of self, which allows others to get you a story of us, which enables your community to get each other. And a story of now which transforms the present moment into one of challenge, hope, and action by promoting mutual understanding. This powerful tool strengthens leadership capacity, engages empathy, and enables participants to respond to unique challenges related to loss, difference and power.
Amanda (18:51):
And that was really important that we centered most of our programming around that identity development. And the other piece was to bring together folks from different parts of the sector in the local setting that we were doing these fellowships in, because I believe there was too much division in education. And I believe that not enough people understand other roles that are important in the ecosystem to actually influence and impact better outcomes for kids and how much integration there has to be. So we had folks coming from different backgrounds, different roles. We had charter school leaders, we had union representatives, we had people that worked in nonprofits that worked in central office and school districts. That was intentional in terms of sort of who we brought together in our fellowships. The most profound experience for our folks going through that program is the identity development piece and then also these really important networks that they develop and then continue to have as they progress in their careers. And how that leads to so many opportunities for folks and connections that so often Latinos are left out of. We create our own networks and create our own possibilities, which is pretty exciting
Jonathan (20:18):
Since launching in 2015. Latinos for Education now has over 500 people attending their programs across the country and places including Massachusetts, the Bay Area, and California and Houston, Texas. The organization connects Latinx educators across the country online too.
Amanda (20:37):
Ed Centro is our own version of a LinkedIn for Latino educators and we have job postings there, but we also do a lot of professional development and other programming. It's an opportunity for folks to identify like-minded people, mentors, connections. And so we have almost 4,000 Latinos in that network across the country. Wow. We have the Latino Board Fellowship, which is to include Latinos from outside of education in the education sector by serving on education, nonprofit boards of directors. So we're really trying to get all kinds of folks involved in the ecosystem. We launched a Latino teacher fellowship recently because we were really concerned about retention of Latino educators. As you know, as we all know, Latino and black teachers leave at much higher rates and around the fourth year is usually a tipping point. So we wanted to focus on Latinx teachers through our, our fellowship. And then most recently we launched Familia Latinas in Houston as a pilot because we were finding that our Spanish speaking families, no surprise, were left out, left without a seat at the table in their own school districts and in their own schools. And so we've launched a fellowship that's done completely in Spanish to activate our parents to be the most important advocates that can exist, which are parents and families on behalf of their kids. So kind of what do we think about? These are all roles that have direct impact on student outcome.
Jonathan (22:26):
Most recently through their policy and advocacy work, Latinos for Education, marshaled support for the Educator Diversity Act in Massachusetts, the first legislation of its kind in the state that is directly focused on removing recruiting and retention barriers for educators of color.
Amanda (22:44):
We talk a lot about those barriers, but you don't see as many states really engaged in policy making around removing those barriers. So I'm really proud of this legislation. I believe we're one of the few states across the country that has a bill of this kind. And that is just another way in which we are building the ecosystem of advocates for Latino children, but all low income children. And so our network just keeps expanding as a result. And that is the goal is to really put Latino education, Latino education issues out into the universe because of our demographic size. You can't not pay attention to Latinos anymore. And for far too long we were just an afterthought and we still are missing from far too many tables. But my belief is that Latinos for Education will play a significant role in really expanding those tables and really expanding the message of wanting to remove those barriers to educational opportunity for Latino children. But ultimately all, all children who don't benefit from the education that they should be afforded.
Jonathan (24:08):
After the break, we'll continue our conversation with an educator who has participated in one of Latinos for Education's programs. But first we wanted to hear from students across the country who are being impacted by teachers who share aspects of their identities throughout this season. We'll be lifting up the voices of students of color as they reflect on their experiences. Here are Carmen, Emily, nada, and Elizabeth, eighth graders from East Las Vegas, reflecting on their experience having Latinx teachers.
Carmen, (Voice Memo) (24:43):
Hi, my name is Carmen. Hi, my name is Emeli. I identify as Latina. In this school year, I have three teachers that identify as Latinas. The impact my teachers have had on me is positive. For example, I have good communication with them and because I feel like I work better with them instead of of this teachers At my school, we have a class advisor who is Latina. She's in charge of a whole grade. This is very important for me because it's detailing a Latina woman, being independent and having power, power over a big group of people and something I inspire and and impacts me in a very positive way. I hope I can keep having Latinas in high school because it makes me feel welcome and comfortable. Whenever I work with teachers who don't show my identity, I feel like they don't really understand what I'm saying and they don't have the best communication with me with other teachers that show my identity. This is important to me because the teachers that have my identity get to understand me more when I'm having trouble explaining it. Also, because I can go with them no matter what and I can also trust them.
Jonathan (25:59):
Next up is Nata Garcia from Canyon Springs High School in Las Vegas, Nevada. Here Nada discusses the impact her teacher Ms. Santa Maria has had on her school experience.
Nata Garcia, (Voice Memo) (26:12):
Hi, I'm Nata Garcia. During my everyday life, I identify as Mexican-American because both my parents are Mexican. They were born in Mexico, but I was born in the United States. Hispanic kids and our communities sometimes are discriminated against. So I feel like you understand like the struggles of growing up as a Hispanic kid and having you as my teacher has made it easier because I feel like you understand me and like you know how to communicate with me and the rest of us Hispanic kids. I think it's important to have all different kinds of teachers because there's many different kinds of students in every school. So I feel like there should be teachers that represent everyone, you know, to make everyone feel comfortable while in school, learning in school.
Jonathan (26:57):
Last but not least, here's Elizabeth sharing in her native tongue about the impact of her teacher. Ms. Aguilar, one of the few Latinx teachers she's had throughout the years.
Elizabeth, (Voice Memo) (27:06):
Mi nombre es Elizabeth y me identifico como hispano. Tengo una maestra con la que me identifico, es Ms.Aquilar porque es una maestra de las pocas que tenemos aquí que son hispanos, entienden nuestro idioma, entienden nuestros chistes.
(27:06)
[My name is Elizabeth and I identify as Hispanic. I have a teacher who identifies like me, Ms. Aguilar. She is one of the few teachers we have here that is Hispanic. She understands our language. She understands our jokes]
Jonathan (27:21):
As one of the few Latinx teachers Elizabeth has had. She says Ms. Aguilar has helped her feel understood whether it's understanding her jokes or her language
Elizabeth (27:30):
Ms.Aquilar es una persona que me ha ayudado bastante con el tema del idioma. Cuando yo llegué aquí no sabía casi nada. Ella me ha ayudado a avanzar en ese aspecto del idioma.
(27:30)
[Ms. Aguilar is someone who has helped me a lot with learning English. When I arrived here, I knew almost notohing. She has helped me improve.]
Jonathan (27:43):
In addition to helping Elizabeth improve her English over the years, Elizabeth says Ms. Aguilar helped her seek college as a priceless opportunity.
Elizabeth (27:51):
los años pasados de no querer al college, ella me hizo entender que ir a la universidad es un gran paso para un gran futuro.
(27:51)
years ago, I didn’t want to go to college. But she made me understand that going to college is a great step towards a great future.]
Jonathan (28:09):
As we mentioned earlier, Latinos for Education's impact now expands beyond the borders of Massachusetts. Let's meet our next guest, Jay Alvarez and educator based in Houston, Texas. Jay was a participant in Latinos for Educations, Latinx Teachers Fellowship in 2022.
Jay Alvarez, Guest (28:28):
My name is Jay Alvarez. Currently I am a high school graduation coach, which pretty much means that I work primarily with high school students who are seniors who are labeled or defined as at risk of not graduating with their classes. So my main task is to make sure they're coming to school, doing their work, passing their classes, all of those things pretty much as the title says, a coach to coach them to make sure that they're doing what they need to do to be successful and graduate on time with their cohort.
Jonathan (29:00):
Prior to being promoted to a coach, Jay taught Spanish for five years in Houston's independent school district.
Jay (29:07):
I've done everything from basic Spanish one, uh, advanced placement, AP Spanish. So, um, I really enjoyed that. I'm really big about students. I definitely feel like a lot of my students feel and I think that's why I kind of relate to them so much. Cause I tell 'em, I'm like, I'm not that old y'all. It's not been that so long since I've <laugh> since I've been in high school. And it, it kinda like when I see different situations, it reminds me of things like that happened maybe with me or similar situations that I saw happen when I was in high school. It's kinda a little bit different from me because I came from a state that's not very diverse at all. So it was a lot of things that were going on around me that I guess teachers didn't understand or didn't care to understand. Um, not saying that I didn't have good teachers, but I didn't have teachers that kind of made it their business.
(29:53)
To know more about Jay to get to know what's going on with Jay outside the classroom. It's kind of like, well if you're not, you know, if you're not a behavioral problem, if you're coming to school, if you're doing what you're supposed to do, like they don't, you know, you're okay. Mm-hmm. <affirmative>. So I think that that's a part that I wish I did have. One of the reasons why I decided to um, embark on my unity with the group of Latinos for education. Cause I'm very passionate about helping, you know, specifically minority students as well. The school that I currently work at is about 86% Latino. We're about 95% minority. So we have a huge minority population that we serve here. So, um, again, I have many different hats that I have to wear on my campus in order to, to make sure that the students needs are being met and that I can make sure that they're being successful in doing what they need to do.
Jonathan (30:41):
You said minority, but it's like 95% of the school they're, they're not the minority, at least at school.
Jay (30:46):
Yeah. Yeah. Definitely not here. <laugh>
Jonathan (30:48):
For Jay, some of the disconnect that happens in the classroom isn't just related to training or behavioral issues, it's cultural.
Jay (30:57):
Some of our teachers, they're not equipped to work with minority students in general. Things that would be considered a behavioral problem for them is generally not considered a behavioral problem for me is some cultural aspects that some teachers don't understand or not trained on. And I think that's partially it, that they don't understand the cultural aspect of being minority, whether it's Latino or African American, Asian. It's just those different cultural things. I think it's a lack of understanding. Like for example, something simple as, you know, a student coming used to school, you know, 10 minutes late or something, they're late to class. And then, you know, when you finally talk to that student, you don't know that that student has four little brothers that he has to take to school. You don't know that he worked all last night with his dad doing construction or whatever the things may be.
(31:44)
So it's like you over here yelling at him about being 10 minutes late when you have, you know, some students who on the other side who may have you know you, like I said, you pretty much always say this to my students. You never know what somebody's going through at home or what their situation is. So if we're more kind of understanding of that, it could really like change a lot of things. Cause students don't wanna hear you coming in, you know, yelling at 'em about being 10 minutes late when, you know, they tried to get here, they had to fix breakfast, they had to work out last night, they had to drop three brothers off at three different schools. Now they're trying to come to school and like I hear a teacher over there yelling about not having a pencil. Like hmm. You know, like it's just kind of like, you know, it's just kind of things like that that really kind of irritate me. And a lot of those, they'll come to my room now cuz again, we've developed that relationship and they'll be like, why? You know, why can't more teachers be like, why can't they be understanding of, you know, different situations for different people.
Jonathan (32:34):
Like we've been hearing all season long, the relationships teachers build with their students is crucial. Students have to know you care.
Jay (32:42):
The one point the school asked me to do like a PD on like building relationships and do that and I was like, it's very hard to teach someone you know, to care about <laugh>. You know what your students are going through. You're an educator. I'm like, how do I teach you? Like, hey, like talk to your students. Get to know them. Like, so I feel like if just more teachers just kind of took the time and don't think that, you know, cuz some will say that some like, well it's not in my job description to get to know the students. It's not like I, I just need to teach grade and go home. You know, so mm-hmm. <affirmative>, when you have educators that have that type of mindset, it's gonna be very, they're they are, they are gonna struggle. Especially in a school like mine.
Jonathan (33:15):
When Jay connected with Latinos for Education, the nonprofit's emphasis on honoring Latinx culture and relationship building were two key elements that stood out and had a huge impact on him professionally. And Alfred e he found the motivation to keep going and try new ideas, to close graduation gaps.
Jay (33:35):
The main thing that kind of helped me was to know that I wasn't in the work alone. Sometimes you feel like, you know, you're the only one trying to make this big impact. And then it's kind of difficult too when you try to, you know, if I go and talk to some of my colleagues, I'm like, okay, I wanna do this for the kids, I wanna do that for the kids. And it's kind of like, oh, well that's a lot. We already have a lot on our plates, you know, we, we just need to stick to, you know, what our job description says. And, and it can kind of be very, you know, disappointing, discouraging. Especially when you have all these ideas and maybe some teachers who have different mindsets to you kind of shut that down. But when I was in this room with these educators and everybody was just really trying to do things, they were doing groups.
(34:18)
They were going out and fundraising, they were creating different programs, organizations for their students. It was such like a breath of fresh air to no. I'm like, oh wow, there's some educators really trying to go the extra mile because for everything that we have to do, sometimes it's, everything that we do do is not in our job description. So especially when we see a student's need that's not being met, we're trying to fill it. So that's really when we got together and talked in our, our sessions, which most of them were virtual, that's what we were brainstorming and talking about together. How can we help our minority students catch up with our non-minority students? What is it that they need? What can we do to fill in those gaps so that, you know, graduation rates won't be so extremely different or after college rates won't be as, as extremely different as they are now. From, you know, from the data that we explored during the different sessions.
Jonathan (35:08):
Latinos for Education was unique for Jay because it wasn't the average professional development program. It was a network and a support system. Jay says he had been through professional development programs before, but nothing quite like his experience with Latinos for Education. Once the program wrapped up, the group still kept in touch. They actually got together over the holidays not too long ago.
Jay (35:33):
I'm like, this is different. Once we had that last session, I'm thinking, okay, I got my certificate, I got the pd, I'm good. You know, good luck to everybody, but it's kind of like Latino Fred really stayed in contact with me, but I'm like, this is the first group that we've kind of continued to meet. So I'm like, okay, so this is kind of a, this is not just a a PD thing. This is more, you know, a more like a really like put together community. The directors are like constantly emailing me, Hey, how are you doing? They wanna do a book study, they want me to come talk at the conference. I didn't see the after part of it. We still kind of keep in contact and communicate on a regular basis. We meet at least a baby about once a month and just kind of, even if it's may be something that we are, we're, you know, we're trying to do in the community, I feel like having that sense of really like real community and real groups and where I can text the group chat and be like, Hey, you know guys, I'm trying to do this with my kids.
(36:24)
Did anybody know somebody that can do this or can do that? And also with those meeting greets, I'm able to meet the past people who went through the program before me. So I'm not meeting just the ones that did, you know, the ones that I went through the program with. I mean the ones who did it 5, 6, 7 years ago mm-hmm. <affirmative>, which is adding to my network. Cause now they're showing up. They said, oh, I did the program and this year I did from 2016 I did program 2017, whatever, whatever the situation may be. And now I'm able to use them as resources. So now they're saying couple, like, I met a guy at, at our Christmas party who did the Aspiring Leaders program and he said, oh yeah, I've worked for this. I do, you know this, if you need something, let me know. I'm, I'm able to get you this. I can go to these schools. Okay, where's your school at? Okay, let me get your number so I can let you know when I'm in the area. So it's just like, just I, we can send somebody to come talk to your kids about this stuff. So it's just like, I'm like, wow, like having all these resources just kind of like, just come out of nowhere. That's why I was like, oh. I was like, okay, this is, this is different. This is something I wanna make sure I stay kind of close to. You know? Yeah.
Jonathan (37:20):
<laugh>. No, that's, that's beautiful. That's really beautiful. While Jay never had a teacher who connected with him on a cultural level in grade school, he did meet a mentor in college who significantly impacted his life. Community oriented mentorship was modeled for Jay during his time in the Latinx teacher's fellowship. Today Jay continues to stress the importance of mentorship and connection to the students in his classroom.
Jay (37:45):
You need to find a mentor. You need to find somebody that's gonna, you know, have your bag tell you when you're wrong, but support you all the way. Mm. That will make your experience again, both here in high school, college, that will make your experience a hundred percent better. Yeah. Find that person in your life that you can trust to fill that role for.
Jonathan (38:03):
We know that there are many obstacles that make it difficult for Latinx leaders to enter and remain in the classroom because of this. There isn't just one thing that will break down barriers in education, but we challenged our leaders today to dream anyway. We asked them to tell us what is one thing they would address if they had a magic wand. Here are Jay and Amanda with some final thoughts.
Jay (38:30):
Oh that is, that's a, that's a very good question. <laugh>, the whole mindset of educating has to be changed cuz they don't teach you how to, you know, this student is at home, he doesn't have any lights on at his house, he's angry, he comes in or he's tired, he worked on that. He's tired. Like you have to know how to, how to kind of navigate those situations. And there's not a class on how to navigate there. There's a class on classroom management, but classroom management is kind of just a, this is a brief, you know, list of if this happens, this is what you're supposed to do. But different situations call for different things. So I just feel like having that, that way to reach students know how to reach the students as you're teaching, knowing your community, knowing who you teach and like I said, those teachers having that support system in to feel supported and helped while they're going through. Especially maybe those first three years. Cuz again, that first three to five year period is very critical. So I think if they had that support right at the beginning, we would have teachers that would stay in the profession long term.
Amanda (39:28):
The work we do is a peace and it won't change everything at the speed and rate at which we want to. I guess what comes to mind to me is we've gotta address systemic racism and education. I think that that's at the core is through policy and practices. We've gotta be honest about the structures that are impeding both our students and educators from accelerating either their education or their careers. There are just those not so hidden barriers. And I think there's just an honesty we have to have about needing to head on, call it what it is and address it.
Jonathan (40:15):
Thank you. Get involved, y'all. There's a lot of great work happening. Thank you Amanda so much. We appreciate your time, we appreciate your wisdom and your stories.
Amanda (40:24):
Thank you Jonathan.
Jonathan (40:25):
Thank you Jay. We appreciate you man. This has been so good. Thank you
Jay (40:28):
So much.
Jonathan (40:30):
Having a strong sense of community is crucial when it comes to teacher retention. For Latinx leaders, cultivating a culturally inclusive environment in the classroom not only creates a sense of belonging, but essential engagement relevant to all students. Like we've heard across the board this season of changing course, education can be a challenging field. Financial costs for licenses and low salaries make it difficult for many to remain in the classroom. And on a deeper level, systemic racism sends the message to traditionally marginalized or underrepresented teachers like Latinx leaders that they do not belong. But the relationships and networks that are built in the field help create new possibilities. We can't do this work well alone when Bipoc teachers trust that they can bring their full selves into the classroom. They are better positioned to lead and succeed and the possibilities from there are endless. That's it for this week. Thank you so much for listening to changing course from Teach for America's one day studio. I'm Jonathan Santo Silva. Peace. On our final episode of this season of Changing Course, we are looking at how Teach for America is investing in bipoc educators.
Dr. Barbara Logan Smith, Guest (41:54):
As people of color. We have been expected to be strong. Cue the trope. We have been expected to be black girl magic. Cue the trope. We've been like set up to think that we are somehow going to be superhuman. And the reality is we're actually still just people. And so how do we make what we're asking folks to do in these jobs more sustainable so that folks can actually stay in it with the help and support and guidance that they need.
Jonathan (42:21):
That's next time on Changing Course. And if you love the podcast, be sure to rate, review, and follow Changing Course on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcast.
(42:35)
Change in course is produced by Teach Four America's one day studio in partnership with pod people. Special thanks to my main man, Michael Kress, Georgia Davis, Stephanie Garcia, and Akande Simons from Teach For America and the production team at Pod People. Rachel King, Matt Sav, Aimee Machado, killer B, Bryan Rivers, Danielle Roth, two Live crew themselves, Chris Jacobs and Shaneez Tyndall and Carter Wogahn. Last but certainly not least, thank you to Carmen, Emily, Nata, and Elizabeth and Jay Alvarez and Amanda Fernandez from Latinos for Education who shared their time and experience. To help us make this episode, I'm Jonathan Santo Silva. Peace.
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About The Show
Host Jonathan Santos Silva (South Dakota ‘10) will sit down with innovative nonprofits from across the country that are committed to attracting, training, and retaining BIPOC educators. Each episode will feature thoughtful conversations about how organizations are investing in and providing careers where BIPOC staff can flourish.
Meet The Host
Jonathan Santos Silva (South Dakota ‘10)
Jonathan Santos Silva is the Founding Executive Director of The Liber Institute and creator and host of The Bored of Ed, a podcast that amplifies the voices of inspiring BIPOC educators who are changing the face of education. He has provided technical support to South Dakota’s Native American Achievement Schools and has served as a school founder and principal, instructional coach, and education consultant.
Featured In This Episode
Amanda Fernandez, CEO and Founder of Latinos for Education, and former VP of Latino Community Partnerships at Teach For America
Amanda is the CEO & Founder of the first national Latino-founded and led organization, Latinos for Education, dedicated to creating leadership pathways for emerging Latino education leaders and diversifying education nonprofit boards. She is a Trustee of the Board with the Massachusetts Board of Elementary and Secondary Education and Roxbury Community College and a Senior Fellow at FutureEd.
Jay Alvarez, high school educator and L4E Fellow
Jay is a high school graduation coach. He works primarily with high school seniors who are at risk of not graduating with their classes. Jay’s goal is to help these students come to school prepared in order to pass their classes and graduate on time.
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