His Goal Is to ‘Broaden Our World’
It takes more than a village.
When it comes to education, Manuel Gomez--who has spent 30 years in the field--believes it takes the world.
Gomez, vice chancellor for student affairs at UC Irvine, received the education award from Orange County’s United Way Hispanic Development Council last month. He accepted the honor at the annual Hispanic Influentials Awards Dinner not on his behalf but as a “reflection of the value the entire community places on education and achievement,” he said.
Education, he believes, is anything but easy. It involves dedicated teachers, parents who often are struggling to give their children learning experiences they couldn’t afford themselves, and students who are willing to cross boundaries.
“The real measure of an education is that it must broaden our world beyond our homes and communities,” said Gomez, who was born in Santa Ana.
“In Spanish, we say ‘tienes mas mundo.’ It sounds better in Spanish but it means one who is educated is one who has more world.”
Gomez graduated from Santiago High in Garden Grove, attended Cal State Hayward in the Bay Area, worked in Oakland’s public schools and went to Washington as part of his doctoral program at USC. There, he helped develop U.S. Department of Education policy in the Carter administration.
At UCI, Gomez oversees leadership-development programs, which include workshops on everything from organizing a meeting to understanding gender ethics in American politics.
Then there’s the UCDC program, which sends students to Washington for internships. Sometimes, students get even more world. Last year, UCI students won internships in Beijing and Mexico City, Gomez said.
Gomez, a former chairman of the Hispanic Development Council, has a national reputation as a leader in making college accessible to Latino youth, said Tim Shaw, vice president of community relations for United Way.
The agency presented Hispanic Influentials awards in seven categories: honoring Gomez in education; baseball player Rod Carew in sports; Rep. Loretta Sanchez (D-Garden Grove) in the professional category; Peter Villegas, vice president of Washington Mutual, in business; Rose Espinoza, founder of an after-school tutoring program, “Rosie’s Garage,” for community service; and the late Hector Godinez of Santa Ana for lifetime achievement. Edison International was honored for corporate responsibility in championing diversity in business circles.
This year’s awards drew triple the normal attendance and brought in $44,000 for Latino programs such as Latino Health Access, Anaheim Independencia and the Delhi Community Center in Santa Ana.
“It just sort of took on a life of its own,” Shaw said. “We wanted to raise our own profile and spotlight success in the Latino community.”
Some of the honorees, such as Carew and Sanchez, are household names.
“Others, like Hector, Rosie and Manuel, you don’t hear their names out there and they are doing so much. We want to put their faces in front of people and say thanks for all they do for United Way and the community,” he said.
The 12-year-old Hispanic Development Council sponsors a multiethnic leadership institute--Sanchez is a graduate--and an annual Latino Unity Luncheon in addition to the awards program.
The Latino community is important to United Way because more than 60% of those it serves are Latino and because Latino business growth could produce potential philanthropists, Shaw said, adding that the United Way raises funds primarily from workplace campaigns.
Orange County’s United Way, (949) 660-7600.
