2013 Hero Story 12: Dr. George Castro – District 5 United!
2013 Hero Story 12 – Dr. George Castro: The following story was submitted by community organization Alum Rock Educational Foundation.
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According to Alum Rock Educational Foundation: Dr. Castro is a retired research scientist from IBM and a former Associate Dean at the School of Science at San Jose State University. While at SJSU he was in charge of the SJSU MESA Program. (MESA: Math, Engineering and Science Achievement). Dr. Castro has been committed to mentoring students to explore the field of science, as well as promoting higher education and supporting their efforts to attend college.
Dr. Castro has been a member of the foundation board since 2003. Since 2003 he has operated the Science and Technology lab at Joseph George Community Center. Hands-on science activities are offered to students age 8 and older daily after school.. The middle school students also have the opportunity to participate in SJSU’s MESA Program. The program also provides support to the science programs at Joseph George Middle School. The program has served over 700 local youth since it began.
In 2010 the program expanded to include hands-on workshops for teachers. These workshops provide support to teachers, assisting in the creation of classroom projects and activities for their students. Dr. Castro writes grants to support the program, which is currently funded by the Mountain Winery Kid’s Foundation and IBM, and is also supported by the City of San Jose, Parks, Recreation and Neighborhoods Services (PRNS).
Dr. Castro inspires Alum Rock youth to expand their academic curiosity and he broadens their horizons. He had devoted many years to creating exciting learning environments in which students discover that they can shine academically and can aspire to careers in engineering, math and science.
Dr. Castro is gracious, humble and immensely generous in sharing his knowledge, resources and time. In the short time that I have been on the AREF Board, I have witnessed his amazing ability to bring youth enrichment programs to life and his devotion to his students’ learning beyond the classroom. I am so very grateful to him from his guidance and for being the inspiring role model that he is.
Dr. Castro puts in more time and effort as a volunteer running the Science and Technology Lab than most people do in the jobs they get paid for. He is truly committed to the providing educational enrichment opportunities to the youth in our community.
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