APRIL 11-13 , 2019 | HILTON UNIVERSAL CITY register soon at www . lead3 . org
4 EDCAL October 8 , 2018
BEATRIZ
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“ She ’ s had long extended absences ,” Northridge Academy High assistant principal Alex Carmona said . “ And when you think it ’ s going to be very difficult for her to
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make up all the work , she somehow comes back with a lot of dedication and a smile on her face which is just incredible .”
Beatriz was born with a Ventricular Septal Defect , a heart defect due to an abnormal connection between the lower chambers .
“ Emotionally , I was devastated ,” Beatriz ’ s mother Rosa Vasquez said . “ I felt hopeless as a mom . I felt that I couldn ’ t do anything . I think a mom ’ s instinct is always trying to help your child . Trying to get them better .”
Beatriz underwent multiple procedures and surgeries , often requiring long stays in the hospital .
“ There were just some times where my mom would say , ‘ We have to go to the hospital ,’” Beatriz said . “ I ’ d cry . Because I don ’ t like being in the hospital . I hate IVs . I hate just being there . I ’ d rather be at home in my own bed with my sisters .”
Her life was in no way normal as much as she tried to make it that way .
“ She ’ s never been a child who could just enjoy life at its fullest ,” Rosa Vasquez said . “ She was a child who was constantly in the hospital .”
As her heart weakened , Beatriz was placed on the waiting list for a transplant . On Oct . 24 , 2016 , Beatriz and her family received a phone call from a nurse that would change their lives .
“ She said , ‘ we have a heart for you ,’” Rosa Vasquez said .
After a successful heart transplant in November 2016 , Beatriz returned to school in the fall of 2017 , much to the delight of the staff at Northridge Academy .
“ I would like to think that we lifted her up ,” Northridge Academy High principal Nidia Castro said . “ We held her and we held her tight at times . And we let her go at other times . Going to what she needed to do . But it was a commitment that everyone who has come into her life academically had . We loved her and continue to love her . And I think that made it easy for us to do all the extra stuff that we needed to do .”
Despite her limited time at Northridge Academy , the impact Beatriz has made on the school is overwhelming .
“ I ’ ve had a lot of special students over the years ,” Carmona said . “ But she is the best in terms of the motivation . In terms of how she motivates her peers . But not only the peers , but also the adults . We ’ re inspired by her story . By her strength . By her resiliency . It ’ s just amazing . It ’ s unlike anything else I ’ ve seen in my life .”
See the stories of all Every Student Succeeding Award winners on the ACSA YouTube channel at https :// www . youtube . com / user / acsaorg / videos .
LUIS
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cal abuse at the hands of his mother . She would often leave Luis and his younger brother to fend for themselves while the family was homeless .
“ My childhood mainly is painful and I try to repress most of it ,” Luis said . “ I couldn ’ t understand why it was happening to me . But I didn ’ t feel necessarily sad . Just kind of hurt . There was just so much physical pain I had to endure .” Luis missed six months of school while living on the streets . As a result , he had to repeat the first grade . But the trauma from his early childhood was a bigger issue . He spent more than a decade in the foster care system due to his mother ’ s drug addiction . Luis fell into a deep depression that lasted for several years .
“ To hear the story that Luis came from just tore my heart ,” teacher Scott Lockman said .“ I almost wanted to tear up . No student should go through that . I was just thinking about what he came through . Not having a mom and dad . And the drugs . And the homelessness . All of that .”
Thankfully , at Ramona High , Luis found the family he never had . The school ’ s AVID program helps first-generation college students prepare for life after high school .
“ I really feel the AVID program here at Ramona High School was the catalyst to help him ensure that he doesn ’ t fall through the cracks ,” Ramona High counselor Mark Lim said .
Lockman also credits AVID for helping Luis find his self-confidence .
“ I really believe that being part of a program like AVID , being part of an AVID classroom , a family , gave him the support that he needed ,” Lockman said . “ Gave him the motivation that , ‘ Yeah . I can do this . I can really do this . This is really possible . College is really possible for me .’”
When asked where he would be without AVID , Luis gave a blunt answer .
“ I would be a drop out ,” Luis said . “ No question about it . I would be a drop out . In a way , AVID was a second family to me . And I found family through friends . And that ’ s the only family I really loved and known .”
It would have been easy for Luis Diaz to drop out of school . Instead , he sees his education as a chance to break the cycle and move past the pain .
“ Being the first one to go to college in my family . That ’ s just kind of like an enlightenment of a new world . No longer will I have to look at the past . I ’ ll just kind of focus on the future .”
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The Leadership 3.0 Symposium is a collaborative effort of ACSA , Computer Using Educators and Technology Information Center for Administrative Leadership . It is truly “ for administrators , by administrators .”
The annual symposium features keynote presentations , concurrent sessions and several pre-conference workshops and seminars .