Written by Jesus Rendon-Silva, Policy Analyst at EPCOR, and VYP Board Member
I grew up in a low-income neighborhood as a first-generation student, and my path looked a lot different than it might have without the people who invested in me. I moved schools twice, and the second move landed me at Alhambra Traditional School on the west side of town. My parents made a 30-minute drive each way, every day, because they believed in the betterment of my education. My mom was my first role model. When my siblings and I tagged along to her job as kids, we always had something to keep us busy: a Lego set or, more often, a book, usually about history. She planted the seed for a lifelong love of the subject.
As I finished sixth grade, I got a card listing my junior high teachers. Social studies, my favorite subject, would be taught by Ken Sampson, and he’d be my first male teacher. Mr. Sampson let me raise my hand as many times as I wanted, and no question was too small, even the ones I now realize were pretty silly. He gave the same patience to every student in a classroom of junior high kids who weren’t always at their best. I learned patience and work ethic from him, and I still remember what I learned in that class. It gave me goals and a mindset: there were places I wanted to be, and I could get there. Over two years with him, and in the years since, he has remained the best teacher I’ve ever had. We stayed in touch through high school, went to Arizona State University games together, and shared lunches where I could pick his brain on anything, academic or personal. When I was applying for internships and later headed to Washington, D.C., he was the first person I called. Humble to a fault, he doesn’t give himself enough credit. Coming from my background, I see him as a father figure, someone who was always willing to listen and challenge me to become a better version of myself.
That’s why this month’s theme matters so much to me. Many of us do the work we do because of mentors who took the time to invest in us, and as professionals, it’s our turn to do the same for the next generation of leaders as they search for their own path. My biggest role model is Ken Sampson, and he retires from teaching this May. It’s bittersweet knowing future students won’t get the teacher I had, but I’m grateful that we still connect. In many ways, my love for politics, school, and so much of where I am today, started and developed in his classroom.