Alumni Spotlight: Juan Martinez Esqueda

Juan became an HSC scholar in the Fall of 2013. He went on to earn his degree from The University of Texas at Austin in 2016 with an English major and an Education minor. He also graduated with a teaching certificate for English Language Arts for grades 7-12. After graduation, he began working as a middle school teacher.

To describe his time as an HSC scholar, Juan explains:

"HSC introduced me to many other students who looked like me and had been successful at navigating the many pitfalls college can offer. Before I got accepted to UT, no one in my family had even graduated middle school. HSC did a fantastic job at allowing me to network with other students who offered advice and guidance on how to do college right."

Now, Juan is working as an 8th grade English Language Arts (ELA) Teacher at a middle school in South Austin. He is quite happy that he gets to see the many dreams and goals that his students have, and that he gets to be a part of their journeys to reach them.

As an HSC scholar, Juan spent lots of time volunteering with kids. In the Fall of 2014, Juan volunteered at the Chuy's Children Giving to Children Parade in helping a group of students take a large balloon along the Parade. In the Spring of 2015, he mentored a 2nd grade student once a week for several weeks, helping them with their homework and reading vocabulary words. In the Fall of 2016, he watched over a group of small kids at Harris Elementary School. It is no surprise that Juan became a teacher, he has shown consistency in his passion!

Now, Juan has many hopes for his students. He hopes to show each and every one of them that college is achievable, regardless of their family's education history or their socioeconomic status. He also hopes to inspire his students to think of their heritage as a "beautiful gift" that deserves to be shared with the world.

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We look forward to seeing what Juan continues to accomplish!