Wave Employees Report
COMPTON — Rising up, Dennis Masias didn’t like faculty.
“After I was youthful, I by no means thought training was for me,” he stated. “As a highschool freshman, I hated faculty, however realized I wanted to complete highschool.
The turning level got here in 2011 when his mom dropped him off Compton School and instructed him to go enroll for lessons.
“She stated, ‘Get out of the automobile and go determine this out,’” Masias, a 2014 graduate of Compton School who now works on the faculty inspiring college students to finish their academic targets.
Masias is a first-generation faculty graduate who was raised by a single mom. He turned to his grandfather and uncle for steerage with life’s challenges. Though he’s an introvert, he has a persona that individuals gravitate towards and is open to alternatives that may come his manner.
He used these qualities to his benefit by constructing a community of those that might assist him throughout his uncharted journey into greater training. He transferred to Cal State Fullerton and graduated with a bachelor’s diploma in fantastic arts with an emphasis in graphic design in June 2018.
“Compton School is the place I lastly discovered a real sense of belonging,” Masias stated. “It’s a spot the place I might actually be myself. School and employees noticed potential in me that I didn’t see.
He took benefit of all of the sources and scholar companies provided to assist him achieve success. He discovered school/employees mentors. He helped set up and served as president of the Brothers2Brothers Membership on campus amd grew to become a scholar ambassador so he might give again by serving to different college students navigate faculty life and Compton School sources he had benefited from.
“I imagine Compton School is a superb start line for any scholar,” he stated. “I’ve personally constructed a lot on that basis since first setting foot on campus.”
His ties to Compton School run deep and he has stayed related as a scholar, a scholar employee, a tutor, a graduate, a volunteer, and eventually as an worker giving again to college students. Masias serves as a program specialist for the MESA Program within the MESA/STEM Middle at Compton School, a place he was employed for in July 2023.
The state-funded Arithmetic, Engineering, Science, Achievement program helps underserved and underrepresented college students pursuing math and science levels. It provides tutorial and assist companies to economically and educationally deprived college students majoring in calculus-based science, know-how, engineering and arithmetic fields, serving to them switch to four-year establishments to finish their bachelor’s levels.
Masias duties embrace recruiting college students for the MESA program who’re enrolled in STEM-based programs and welcoming them to make the most of the MESA/STEM Middle sources; creating workshops in collaboration with the MESA program supervisor; and visiting in-district excessive colleges and selling Discover STEM — a highschool summer time enrichment exercise designed to introduce STEM fields to college students.
Previous to working at Compton School, Masias additionally labored at Cal State Fullerton and Cal State Dominguez Hills via alternatives that got here from his participation in tutorial actions. He additionally served for 2 consecutive summers as a residential advisor for the Summer time Bridge Program at Cal State Fullerton mentoring college students from the college’s Instructional Alternative Program.
Masias is very keen about working with college students of coloration, motivated by his personal experiences. “After I first transferred to [Fullerton], it was troublesome; I had imposter syndrome,” he stated. “There have been many occasions I needed to stop. I didn’t see many college students like me, particularly in my artwork lessons.
“I discovered my neighborhood on the Latinx Useful resource Middle on campus and have become concerned with the Male Success Initiative, the place I additionally discovered my mentor who was the director of this system.
“My recommendation to college students of coloration who could battle initially at any faculty is to seek out your communities and sources on campus; they assist tremendously.”
Masias says he actually loved working for the Male Success Alliance at Dominguez Hills.
“I labored with center and highschool college students serving to them develop life expertise and getting ready them for his or her journeys after highschool, so they’re higher geared up to navigate faculty and their profession,” he stated. “That is after I realized that my fruits of expertise so far was calling me to scholar companies work. It was a pure and comfy development for me.”
Masias notes {that a} scholar’s journey via greater training and profession is just not often a straight line. There will be twists and turns, in addition to challenges or roadblocks alongside the way in which.
“Bear in mind, earlier than we’re successful story, all of us have a narrative,” he stated. “We have now already gone via a lot life and have overcome much more. All of us have the potential to achieve success and obtain our goals, we simply must put within the work.”
Masias has achieved his dream of working at Compton School. The college and employees at Compton School offered him with super assist when he was a scholar, and now he’s doing the identical for different college students.
His phrases of encouragement for present and future college students: “If nobody has instructed you up so far that they imagine in you, I wish to let you recognize that I imagine in you and that I do know you may be profitable.”
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