We are very excited to welcome our new Advisor and Program Coordinator, Luis Chaidez! A first generation college student and graduate of UC Irvine, Luis is passionate about working with students to help them navigate the path to and through college. In his own words, “I chose to work in the college access field because of my own personal development in school as a Latinx male. Growing up in a low-income single-parent household with limited resources in school helped me realize the immense privilege of using school to level up in life. During high school I developed a lifelong connection with my mentor Mr. Vetter and for the first time learned about the opportunity to attend college. After my freshman year in high school, I was admitted into UC Riverside’s Upward Bound Program. At that point in time, I was basically failing out of high school but after immersing myself in the program, I established close connections with staff who operated as foundational pillars for me to access higher education.
While I attended UC Irvine, serving my community in the college access realm became a personal commitment for me to bridge students and men of color to access and complete higher education. I worked for similar federal access programs and with university outreach initiatives supporting high school youth throughout South Central Los Angeles. I believe college access programs are imperative in revealing the boundless intellectual power interwoven in the diverse communities we serve and in strengthening the pipeline to higher education. I am delighted to be part of this challenging yet fulfilling work.”