Tony Mora
When Tony Mora talks to students about their educational journey, he shows them a picture of two lines. The straight line is the one some of them will follow, a direct path from high school to college. The squiggly line is the more circuitous path, with bumps and diversions, but ultimately leads to the same success.
Mora, like many of the students he counsels, was once the squiggly line, an English learner who almost didn’t graduate from high school. Now he is a district advisor in the San Diego County Office of Education, helping districts with policy compliance and assessment involving English learners. He also volunteers with a community group committed to helping Latino males complete high school and enter higher education.
He said he was drawn to the Rossier DEI certificate program because it offered a way for him to practice what he preaches to the struggling youths he encounters. “I saw it as an opportunity for me to learn and add additional skill sets to my toolbox,” he said.
One experience he valued was a class discussion on the subtle, often unintentional acts of discrimination known as microaggressions.
“As a Latino male I have experienced those microaggressions firsthand,” Mora said. “But what I have learned is I need to be more precise in my wording, too. Did I say something that could be interpreted as a microaggression?”
He also welcomed the chance to learn more about critical race theory, an issue that has provoked heated public debate across the country. In San Diego County, critics have staged protests and even lodged a civil rights complaint.
Critical race theory is not taught in public schools, Mora said, but “when I work with parents, how do I validate their opinion but also tell them this is not happening? Because you want them at the table.
“The one thing I learned through this program is we need to make sure our parents and community have a seat at the table. And we need to be the voice for those marginalized individuals who don’t have a seat at the table.”