From Child Student to Parent Student

My mother, un campesina, made it to the third grade. My father, un campesino, only made it to the sixth. When I learned this as a child, it came as quite a shock. We were raised to believe that education was the key to social mobility. It was something that could not be taken away from us. Instead of buying a bike for us during the summer, invested in an encyclopedia set. As a child, I didn't argue much with my mother so I had to settle for the encyclopedia set as much as I wanted the bike. And yes, all of Ms. Castillo's children are college educated.

When my mother learned I could read at age five, she armed me with a library card. When I walked into the library in Loisada, New York City, I was in awe. My library card was my passport to the world. I remember my mother not being much help when it came to homework. At first, it was kind of tough. Thankfully our schools had after school tutoring at no charge. After awhile, we got the hang of it and did our homework on our own by helping one another out.

Despite my parents limited education, they put college in our sites very early. I think the best lesson my parents taught me is that education is much more than going to good schools and getting a good job. They saw it as something that was community based. They instilled in us that education should enrich the lives of everyone. My mother who advocate for mothers and children who had difficulty in school. She would use me as a translator. As a child I was annoyed by this. I didn't have any problems in school so why should I help? Looking back I realized how much of an education my mother was giving me.



As I grew older, I began mentoring young people. It is something I do to this day. It was something my mother instilled in me at a young age. It is easy as parents to just have tunnel vision and worry only about our own children. "Somos reponsable!" My mother would demand of us when it came to our fellow students. Today I find my wife and I at the school doing exactly what my mother did for other parents when were little. It's more of a habit than anything else.

I learned quickly as a parent that we needed to take it a step further. I noticed that several programs that were around when I was a child were being cut. It wasn't just in our school district but all over the country. Teachers were being fired and after school programs were being slashed. As usual, textbooks remained outdated and some schools are in dire need of renovation. Children of color continue to lag behind their white counterparts. I had to learn how my tax paying dollars were being used to help those in and outside of our school districts. I learned the names of the school board members right away. I never thought I would be the parent yelling them down during board meetings. I thought that was simply nuts but it is essential at changing policy.

I realized yet again, that raising children is another piece of education. Learning how politics, education, and economics are connected was something I didn't see coming. While politics were always a focus of our discussion growing up, I never saw the big picture. Then again, my mother did much of the fighting we never saw. As parents, we have to do much more than read to our children at night and help them with their homework. We have to demonstrate to them that education is much more than books and schools, it is about access and community power. Education is about empowering not just ourselves but our community.