Completing high school made it possible for this aspiring teacher to achieve her dreams
As a little girl growing up in Mexico, Noemí Acosta admired her teachers.
“I was impressed by all the things they knew, all the things they taught us,” Acosta says. She remembers how at age 7, using chalk and a mini-blackboard, she taught the ABCs to neighborhood kids in a hallway of her home in Mexico.
“I decided early on to become a teacher,” she says.
Now 30 and a married mother of two children, Acosta’s dream of becoming a professional educator has twice been put on hold: first, due to her inability to afford college in Mexico and later, when her youngest was born.
I want the children to remember me with the same affection that I remember my teachers.
NoemÍ Acosta
Adult education student and aspiring teacher
After she completed college-prep classes in Mexico, Acosta faced a cruel reality: she could not pay her college tuition. So she became a cashier for a Mexican credit union, rising to loan officer during her five years with the bank.
In 2013, Acosta and her then-2-year-old daughter, Abril, immigrated to southern California, where Acosta’s husband, Jose, had arrived earlier. Noemí Acosta took English as a Second Language courses for five months, but dropped the classes after her son, Alberto, was born in 2014.
According to Danny Bever, who teaches adult education classes at Petaluma’s San Antonio High School, students drop out of school “for many reasons … and most of them have little to do with ability or motivation.” Often, he adds, “life gets in the way of good intentions.”
However, he says that adult education will always be there for those making new bids for diplomas.
In 2015, the family moved to Santa Rosa. Here, Acosta finally found the balance of affordability, access and good timing to pursue her passion. She returned to adult school at Santa Rosa Junior College (SRJC), where she completed the high school equivalency program in two months. She is currently a sophomore at SRJC, and receives financial aid to help cover the cost of her education. She plans to eventually transfer to Sonoma State University and intends to be a teacher by 2022.
Acosta is grateful for the educational opportunities she’s had in California. Today, she tutors farm workers in SRJC’s high school equivalency program, where she earned her diploma. She relishes the job, but can’t stop dreaming about teaching.
“I want to be in front of the classroom,” Acosta says. “And I want the children to remember me with the same affection that I remember my teachers.”
Written by Edgar Sanchez
| Regions | Classes |
|---|---|
| Bay Area California | English as a Second Language – High School |
