My secret



 Hello my name is Dr. Alfredo Ponce.  As much as I hate to brag, I think it is important to tell our stories for the sake of our students.  I was born in LA, taken to Mexico at the age of 2 months (along with my twin brother).  I lived in a small town and in the high country.  In the ranch, we attended one of two schools each about a 5 mile walk.  The class was a small room with no door and window frames.  My classmates ranged from 5 years to 18.  We were all learning the same thing.  Go figure!  In the town school, the last school the last grade I completed was the 3rd grade. The following year, I was to re-do the same grade along with my twin brother Angel and my older brother Nato.  Poor teacher!  We came to the states at the age of 8.  Talk about culture shock.   I recall I was offered a burrito and thought to my self "why would anyone want to give me a burrito (donkey).  I quickly learned a "burrito" was a taco in a flower rather than a corn tortilla".  Apparenlty, I was not Mexican enough...  The language barrier was a different challenge.  My brother and I found ourselves in a race to learn English.  In a weird way, we knew our survival depended on it.  Over the next fiew years, I underwent a series of identity transformations: from the school boy to the homeboy, to the nerdy boy to jock boy...  Somehow, the jock stuck (no pun intended).  My brother and I were not the greatest atheletes, but were very willing to please our coaches.  So we worked tremendously hard.  The hard work and the will to please others is what I think got me here today.  Being with others who wanted to succeed was so inspiring for me!  At one point, I had no idea what careers were much less their path to attainment.  I recall others saying "I am going to be a teacher, coach, physical therapist, principal...  I said to my self "If they can do it, so can I"...  A Native American saying says "shoot for the moon.  If you don't get there you will be among the stars".  And so I survived from the dreams of others and on my journey  I discovered mine!  My journey has been and continues to be a great one.  Along the way, I have completed one bachelors degree, two Master's degrees and what a very small percentage of the population have acheived a doctoral degree all totalling 13 years of post secondary education.  Along my path, I found the love of my life whom in an academic battle holds her very own.  As I reflect on my journey filled with joy, I discovered my secret.  Like to hear it? here it goes! As a child, I was so curisous to see how things were made and what made people tic.  Today, aside from the loves of my life, wha I enjoy most is figuring out how things work (computers) and what make people tick (psychology) just as when I was a young boy.  My advice... close your eyes, think back to when you were 5, 6, 7, 8 years old.  Ask your self "what did I enjoy doing? What amazed me? what piqued my curiosity?  what consumed me? What is the thing that when you are wrapped in it makes an hour seem like five minutes.  When you have answered these questions, you will have found the purpose of your dreams!!!
Dream big and work hard!