They Changed My Life
They were the people who
changed your life. Somewhere,
somehow, someone made a
difference. That was certainly
true for me. I was a freshman at
Carrizozo High School in New Mexico
when Mr. Basil Lawson worked
overtime to transfer me from the
general education track to college
prep. When I was in college, Mick
Henry, New Mexico’s director of
Special Olympics, convinced me to
take a class working with special-needs
children. I began my higher
education career when the late Ben
Brooks, department chair of early
childhood and special education
at Appalachian State University,
challenged me to think about how
many more children I could help
if I could train 25 teachers to do
what he had observed me do in the
classroom. These are some of the
heroes who inspired me to heights I
could never have imagined.
We all have these stories of people who went the extra mile so that someday we could make a difference. They saw potential that we could not see in ourselves. Thanks to my own life experience, I am always inspired when I hear from students and alumni who tell stories of special people who helped shape a future.
Thanks to you, futures are being shaped every day at Cal Poly Pomona. Your support enables scholarships for students, faculty research, better technology and smaller classrooms. These opportunities allow our students to find their heroes.
Who was your Ben Brooks? I would love to hear your story. Send me an e-mail at president@csupomona.edu—and thank you for being such an important part of our community.
| J. Michael Ortiz President Cal Poly Pomona |
©
2009 California State Polytechnic University, Pomona
3801 W. Temple Ave. Pomona, CA 91768