Graduation

I am exhausted - but so happy.  Today was a wonderful day.  Two graduation ceremonies keeping a 3-month old happy. Whew.  But we decided to save ourselves a headache and leave the rest of the kids at home.  We'll show them pictures instead.  Now on to preparations for the big party.

Kyle was selected to give the student graduation speech for the school of Ed. Here's his great speech :)

Checking Our Lenses
College of Education Graduation Speech
Kyle A. Reyes

Ladies and Gentlemen, Aloha.

After the first year of study in my doctoral program (nearly four years ago), it

was glaringly clear that I needed glasses. I noticed that the volume and depth of

required reading was more than my eyes had been used to and headaches were

becoming frequent and intense. I received an eye examination and subsequently,

my first pair of glasses. I still remember the first time I put them on. I was

captivated by the clarity of the world around me and felt empowered with this new

expansion of ability and vision.

About four months ago, as I was putting the finishing touches on my

dissertation, I realized that headaches were returning and that I could not see

things quite as easily again. I returned to the eye doctor to find out that my

eyesight had been shifting and that same day, I received new lenses and once again,

experienced a dramatic shift of clarity.

There is no question that these lenses [pointing to my glasses] have affected

every aspect of my visual life, however, these tangible pieces of plastic have not

been the most significant lenses I have received over the past five years. Thanks to

rigorous readings, robust classroom discussions, and most importantly, Socratic

faculty members, I have had to check and re-check my lenses on numerous

occasions. These lens-check moments have collectively built clarity of perspective

and vision about my role as an educator and lifelong learner. Allow me to explain.

For the majority of my nine-year career as a staff member, adjunct professor,

and administrator in higher education, I have focused on the development of

services and programs that create access and opportunity for underrepresented

students and communities. Fortunately, the bulk of my years as an educator have

run parallel with my enrollment here as a doctoral student. From my first classes

with Dr. Amy Bergerson and Dr. Enrique Alemán, and in nearly every class that

followed, I learned to check my lenses and in turn, invited others to do the same.

Through research of asset-based educational approaches, culturally relevant and

responsible pedagogy, and critical policy analysis, I have had the wonderful

opportunity to put into practice a host of initiatives focused on student inclusion,

access, and opportunity. Many of the decisions I have made have been influenced

by information I have gleaned from readings, classroom dialogue, professors’

insights, and reflective journal entries. Much of my professional success can be

attributed to the wonderful research, teachings, and influence of professors and

peers in this College of Education.  

But perhaps the most poignant lesson I took from this experience was the

way my professors and classmates engaged me to check my lenses daily. Their

passion, experiences, and stories helped me clarify my professional goals and the

arc of my life pursuits—that is, to invite those within my sphere of influence to

check their lenses and to seek the improvement of educational conditions and

outcomes for historically marginalized populations. In this context, lens checking

refers to being honest with ourselves about the assumptions, biases, privileges,

prejudices, and convictions that we bring to the table. This is not a one-time event

but rather an ongoing journey. Our eyes and perspectives shift and often, we do

not even realize that we have, once again, been viewing certain populations

through murky or deficit glasses.

As an educator committed to quality opportunities for all students, I must

confess that I am simultaneously discouraged and hopeful as I look to the future.

My discouragement stems from both a general sense of societal apathy towards

building inclusive educational institutions as well as the prevailing and growing

educational opportunity gaps. However, when I see this graduating class, I feel a

great sense of hope. I am hopeful because of the graduates who will enter

classrooms and establish an asset-based culture of achievement for all students. I

am hopeful because of those who will counsel with students and families to work

through hardships and challenges of educational navigation. I am hopeful for the

graduates who will actively advocate for greater critical understanding of our social

and civil contract as participants in a broad community. I am hopeful because of

graduates who will be educational leaders and administrators who are committed to

inclusion and diversity.

As my current boss and mentor has said many times, “I can think of nothing

more noble or enriching than the profession of being an educator.” My mother

and my mother-in-law, both of whom are here today, have spent their careers as

educators in Los Angeles and the Navajo Nation respectively. The legacy these

women have built over the years has influenced the conversations I have with my

wife regarding our sense of responsibility to reframe or rescript what society has

projected about our indigenous and Pacific Islander communities.

If, in our capacities as educators, we do not constantly check our lenses, and

become champions of opportunity for ALL students, I argue that our education

will have been a waste. I hope that you will not let it go to waste but that you will

have the courage to continually educate and be educated. Thank you. 

At the main graduation ceremony.