Every day I am so inspired by Ismael. He is an extremely charismatic, kind, and well-spoken individual. He is intellectually curious and often surprises me with a range of conversation topics. Ismael was one of my last students to apply to college. He was curious about what college would offer him and shared all of his probing questions with me. We discussed his interests and aspiration and by the end of the conversation, Ismael was still unsure about college. But through that conversation he himself had convinced me to apply to a master’s program in public policy. The Career and College Center at my school gives out “I applied” bracelets for students after they applied to school. Eventually, Ismael was considering going to a four-year college. The day after the college application deadline, Ismael came into my office and asked if I had finished my own application to graduate school. When I responded “Yes!” he beamed, saying “Me too!” He then pulled out two “I applied” bracelets and handed one to me. Ismael, as a student, inspired me and gave me the confidence to apply to graduate school and for that I feel so proud.
– Anonymous Teacher
