A New Education Coordinator

~Andrew Alvarez, Education Coordinator

My name is Andrew Alvarez, and I am happy to anounce that I have been hired by the Imperial Valley Desert Museum as the new Education Coordinator. Born in Northern California to migrant parents, I’ve come to live in multiple places.  Merced, Oakland, Imperial Valley, and most recently Mexicali, Baja California, are some of the places I’ve called home, but none of them have seen me grow as much as Imperial Valley.  In the Valley, I was (and still am) able to develop a sense of self through schooling, experiences with my community, and institutions such as Imperial Valley Desert Museum.  There was also an opportunity to grow on academic settings, which allowed me to express myself through essays, research papers on a variety of subjects, and presentations in and outside the US. 

It was through the SDSU-IV’s History Department that I gained a renewed appreciation for our region.  As with everyone that has lived in the valley, I could not wait to get out.  Circumstances led to me remaining in the Imperial Valley, and I enrolled at SDSU-IV where I was able to enroll on courses that changed my perspective about the region and myself.   At SDSU-IV, I developed an interest in my family history and the migration of my family through Mexico, and eventually, the United States.   This sparked interest in the migration of people from other countries to the United States, and people from the United States to other countries.  In my personal research, I’m exploring the topic of "Stateless Women", who were Mexican women married to Chinese men, who were then deported during Mexico’s anti-Chinese sentiment movements. It was also at SDSU that I met Dr. Neal Hitch and Marcie Landeros, who together introduced me to Imperial Valley Desert Museum as a research intern.

As for the future, I have reenrolled in SDSU-IV to complete a teaching credential with a bilingual authorization.  This would allow me to share my experiences and reach out to students who are struggling with who they are as migrant students, English Language Learners, or commuting from Mexicali to Imperial Valley every day.