Achievers
Throughout the history of Upward Bound at Adams State College there have been many Upward Bound Graduates who have successfully completed Bachelor's degrees and beyond. Listed below are a few graduates who have achieved the honor of being an Upward Bound Achiever.
Angela Montoya
Angela Montoya is an educator and administrator who has been involved with the Upward Bound Program since the 1970's. Ms. Montoya holds degrees from both Adams State College and Denver University. She is presently the principal of Antonito High School in the South Conejos School District.
Angela has a very diverse and impressive work history. She has been a teacher of English for the Alamosa and Antonito school districts, as well as having been an English instructor for Alamosa Rocky Mountain SER Family Learning Center, and the San Lugs Valley Area Vocational School. She also worked for various community projects in both Alamosa and Conejos counties. She has assisted in writing grants and procuring funds for several valley projects in both Alamosa and Conejos counties. She was the founder of the KRZA Educational Radio and was a member of the San Luis Valley Coalition for Drop Out Prevention.
Ms. Montoya was an Upward Bound student participant from Antonito High School in 1973-74. She credits Upward Bound and the Trio programs as "being instrumental in helping her achieve her goals." Exposure to, and participation in these programs have encouraged her to enter the educational field. Her interactions with the TRIO programs have helped her to believe in herself and have inspired her to achieve her personal and professional goals.
Angela's advice to all TRIO and Upward Bound participants is "students need to realize that education is a vital key to life. You need to follow your dreams, and a good education is the key which will open many doors. Dedicate yourselves to making the most out of every educational opportunity which comes your way."
Victor Salazar
Victor Salazar has been involved with Upward Bound for many years. He was a student participant from Antonito High School. He also worked with Upward Bound during his college years, working as a driver for night sessions and as a counselor during the Summer Sessions. He received his B.A. in Sociology and Psychology from Adams State College in 1991.
From 1991-96, he worked for Valley-Wide Health Services, Inc., Adolescent Health Program. A youth advocate, Victor has been involved in various community coalitions whose goals have been to implement alternative activities for youth and their families. He is also active in Community Development. Community Development is the effort which a community can make to identify and solve many of their own problems. In January of 1996, Victor accepted the position of Program Coordinator for the new School to Work Alliance Program (SWAP). SWAP is a collaborative effort between the San Luis Valley Board of Cooperative Services, BOCS, San Luis Valley Educational Center--Alamosa Campus, and the Colorado Division of Vocational Rehabilitation. This program is designed to work with students who have mild to moderate learning disabilities as they move from high school into the work force. His job responsibilities include developing and coordinating a program of community based services which result in successful employment and community living opportunities for youth.
Jaime Romero
Jamie Romero, a 1993 graduate of Centauri High School and four year participant of Upward Bound graduated from Colorado State University in August of 1997 with a degree in Computer Science. He works for Hewlitt Packard in Loveland, Colorado. Romero has many positive statements about how the U.B. program helped him succeed in college. Jamie said he felt that the Upward Bound summer math classes and ACT workshop gave him an edge other students did not have. Another aspect of the program that was beneficial to Romero was the dorm life. He said when he arrived in the dorms at Ft. Collins, he already knew what to expect from his dorm experiences during the summer Upward Bound programs. Romero had some advice for students in the program now. "Take advantage of the opportunities the program offers, these opportunities will benefit you in the long run."
Beverly Maestas
Beverly Maestas began her studies at Adams State College after graduating from Centennial High School in 1992. Beverly majored in Elementary Education and minored in general science. Throughout her years at ASC, Beverly remained an active part of Trio programs both as an Upward Bound Club member and part of the Student Support Services staff. Beverly is very positive about the impact of Upward Bound. She says feels that Upward Bound gave her the the support and preparation necessary for success in college and provided valuable contacts with people on the campus. After completing her studies, Cum Laude, in the spring of 1996 Maestas was flooded with job offers throughout the state as well as New Mexico. However, Maestas chose to give back to her community and is currently teaching science at Centennial Middle School.
Tessa Velasquez
Tessa Velasquez, a 1992 Del Norte High School graduate and UB participant, attended Colorado State University. Velasquez received a Bachelors of Science, majoring in electrical engineering in 1996. During college Tessa kept her affilation with TRIO by working with Talent Search. She has spoken on UB and Talent Search panels to promote these programs and let others know how she has benefitted. Velasquez is the first in her family to have gone to college and she says that Upward Bound was an incredible influence. She says that without the program's encouragement and help in filling out appplications and scholarships, she would not have gone to college. Tessa began as an intern for Hewlitt Packard in her junior year of college. She currently works full time for the company as an engineer.
Teresa DeHerrera
I grew up in the beautiful Valle de San Luis, in Antonito, Colorado. I went to Antonito High School where I was introduced to the TRIO prgrams, first by the Talent Search counselors who recruited me and my buddies to be tutors. It was later on this same year that my high school counselor, Margie Garcia, talked to me about the Upward Bound Program. I don't remember very much about what she told me except that the UB program had a summer component and if I applied and was accepted I would live on the campus in the dorms during the summer months. I wasn't thinking about school or learning, when the idea was given to me to apply to Upward Bound, freedom is what I was thinking about. Who would have known...
Upward Bound changed my life. I was exposed to so many wonderful things in the year and a half that I was in the program. UB helped me with the application and financial aid process to Adams State College, through them I was introduced to and finally was able to participate in the Mexican Folklorico Dance Group, Semillas de la Tierra. I took one semester off in my junior year and spent some time traveling through New Zealand. I came back to college after that short stint and graduated from Adams State College in May 1984 with a degree in English, emphasis in Psychology, Journalism and Education.
After graduating, I enjoyed many different experiences that lead me around the world and back to Colorado. I am currently enrolled in a masters program in Student Affairs in Higher Education at CSU. Today I am the Interim Director of Student Support Services at Community College of Denver and the President of Colorado ASPIRE.
