'We can make it': Teacher's class helps Hispanic students prepare for college, careers

Yahoo

20-02-2025

GREENACRES — Carla Rodas didn't know it that day, but she discovered her life's mission the moment her guidance counselor told her she couldn't go to college.
Rodas was an undocumented immigrant from Guatemala. She soon proved that counselor wrong, becoming the first person in her family to graduate from a U.S. university and then earning a master's degree.
Now a teacher, she assures her students at John I. Leonard High School that their DACA or temporary immigration status will not keep them from getting an education or building a career. And she helps them chart a course to make those goals happen.
'It's like going back to that moment and being the teacher that I needed back then,' said Rodas, who has taught for 15 years in Palm Beach County schools.
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Rodas was teaching at Woodlands Middle School west of Lantana in 2019 when Leonard's former principal, Melissa Paterson, called her. She wanted her to teach the school's Latinos in Action class, which bridges 'the graduation and opportunity gap' for Hispanic students.
Leonard was the first Palm Beach County school to start the class, now offered in 16 states, and for good reason: 70% of its students are Hispanic.
Rodas had wanted to teach at Leonard ever since her oldest son returned from his first day there celebrating that he no longer had to hide his Tupperware of rice and frijoles during recess.
She transferred there in 2020 and immediately felt at home. That Christmas, instead of gift cards, students gave her handmade tamales, arepas and empanadas.
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Rodas describes Latinos in Action as teaching pride about culture, preparing students for college or trade school and developing teens into leaders who give back.
Students learn to research careers, write resumes and prepare for interviews. They get lessons on how to make a budget, organize community projects and eating etiquette.
They also talk about the history and traditions of each Caribbean and Hispanic nation and even go into racial stereotypes and colorism within Latino communities.
'It's a quilt of everything they need to know to feel confident in the real world,' she said.
Each year begins with 'Mi Historia." Each student must share their story. Rodas breaks the ice by telling her own.
She was 10 when her family fled from the civil war in Guatemala. It flew to San Francisco on tourist visas and overstayed them to start a new life.
In Guatemala, her father was a doctor for indigenous tribes and her mother was an accountant. In San Francisco, her mom raised her while working as a housekeeper.
She recounts the fear she felt every time her mother laid out a plan just in case 'La Migra" knocked on the door. She ends being accepted to universities, receiving scholarships and obtaining permanent residency.
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Afterward, Rodas says many students admit they are undocumented, that their parents don't live in the U.S. or recount their journey here.
It's important they know their stories and feel proud of where they come from, Rodas said. She reminds them they are diamonds being forged under pressure.
'It wasn't our choice to come here. We were brought here for a better future,' she said. 'But we can make it. We aren't going anywhere.'
Rodas loves it when her students wear traditional clothes to graduation, call her when they open college-decision letters and stage events like a community Quinceanera.
Her proudest moments, however, come from people like Mario, who crossed the border at age 15 from Guatemala.
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He didn't even speak Spanish when he arrived in Latinos in Action. He picked up broken English on his journey to the U.S and mostly spoke Kaqchikel, an indigenous language.
After school, Mario worked in construction and lived in a rented room. In 'Mi Historia,' Mario said he dreamed about going to college, Rodas said.
By the time he graduated, Mario had a 4.0 GPA and he attended Palm Beach State College on scholarships.
'He had everything against him,' Rodas tells her students. 'You guys have no excuse.'
Rodas is confident her students will become leaders in Palm Beach County and professionals proud of their roots and stories.
'Mission accomplished,' Rodas said. "It's like giving back my little grain of sand to my community.'
Valentina Palm covers Royal Palm Beach, Wellington, Greenacres, Palm Springs and other western communities in Palm Beach County for The Palm Beach Post. Email her at [e-mail] and follow her on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, at @ValenPalmB. Support local journalism: Subscribe today.
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Teacher's class helps Hispanic students prepare for college, careers