I was born and raised in Salinas, a city defined by the agricultural industry that dominates all facets of life in the valley. As a child, I visited labor camps and witnessed the conditions chronicled so memorably by the valley’s best known resident, John Steinbeck. Those visits convinced me that what the immigrant laborers living in thin-walled shacks needed was not help from others – but to learn to help themselves.

I grew up in a family actively committed to social justice causes, particularly those involving farmworkers. It was assumed I would follow a career in public service. But I puzzled over how to mesh that commitment with my passion for science. From an early age, I was fascinated by all aspects of my environs -- oceans, rivers, estuaries, foothills covered in chaparral. At the University of California at Santa Cruz, I stumbled on the idea of teaching. I worked as a special education aide for a year after college to test this potential career. I saw my students – mostly minorities who had been shunted into special education classes -- struggle amidst low expectations. My resolve to become a teacher solidified.

In the Stanford Teacher Education Program (STEP), I gained a lifelong community of mentors and learned from my fellow students and professors. I learned big concepts and small gestures -- to greet each student at the door with a handshake every morning. Equipped with these tools, I returned to the Salinas Valley to help a new generation, to teach children growing up in labor camps how to move from the fields into the halls of higher education. I strive to pass on my love for biology and appreciation of the natural world, and also my love of learning.

Outside the classroom, I coach basketball and serve on an advisory board to facilitate better access for students to the nearby Monterey Bay Aquarium. I helped rebuild our school’s AVID program to guide and support prospective first generation college students through high school and the college application process. Those students’ successes rank among my proudest moments. All of this work has reinforced my conviction that education is the key for students to empower themselves and their families.