In San Luiz, Arizona, along the border of the state and Sonora, Mexico, there is Gadsden Elementary School District #32, where more than 99% of its more than 5,000 students identified as Hispanic in 2020. Within that school district lies Southwest Junior High (SJH), a school comprising mostly Latinx (96%) students.
Dr. Cindy Trejo
According to Dr. Cindy Trejo, author of a new report produced by the Rutgers University’s Samuel Dewitt Proctor Institute for Leadership, Equity, & Justice, what the school does is simply “magic.”
“I really wanted to put a spotlight on what is possible when educators, like the ones in the Gadsden district, see their students as assets and see that the population they serve is capable of achieving their college dreams,” said Trejo, director of Outreach FAMILIA at the University of Arizona. “To me, that's just a beautiful story about equity and about having that inclusive mindset that doesn't see risk factors.
“Instead, what they see is cultural wealth and a lot of strength in their students. And they nurture that.”
For this study, Trejo interviewed 10 students who formerly attended SJH and were – at the time of the interview – either attending or had graduated from college, asking them about their hardships, their motivations, and the preparation SJH provided them. She then offers a series of recommendations that other schools can take to improve.
The interviews with the first-generation college-going Mexican Americans were conducted in a specific manner so as to best gather testimonios, a manner grounded in Chicana feminist theories and indigenous theories, Trejo said.
During these conversations, the “boundaries feel a little more flexible,” she said. As the researcher, Trejo intentionally shared information about her own life and background with the students to build connections and foster safety, trust, and sincerity.
