From the Barrio to Washington: An Educator's Journey

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★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ From the Barrio to Washington Armando Rodriguez as told to Keith Taylor Foreword by Lionel Van Deerlin “I got to know Armando Rodriguez well in 1962. Among the usual half-dozen political races in San Diego county that year, I was running for Congress, he for the state legislature. I came to think of Armando as the best qualified among all of us, present company included. Yet while I was winning a hairline victory, Armando didn’t quite make it. “And I think I know why. My name has a safely northern European ring to it, while Rodriguez was unmistakably Hispanic. Californians were not yet ready. “As his timely autobiography makes clear, Armando’s subsequent life—his endless succession of Hispanic ‘firsts’— has helped change things. California’s present state government is replete with Garcias, Hernandezes, and Bustamantes. Enough of them represent districts of non-Hispanic majority to suggest that the old prejudices are done for. “If this is so, no one has contributed more to our state’s rising level of maturity than the man whose friends call him Shadow. He didn’t hear English spoken until age 8. He endured many a putdown in a world he must often have felt was not meant for an undersized stranger— not even one endowed with the heart of a lion. “That he has made it—and made it big in this new world—speaks well for his ability. That he did it without ever feeling sorry for himself attests to the man’s character.” —Lionel Van Deerlin, member, House of Representatives, 1962–1980, in his Foreword What would be the odds of a poor Mexican boy who migrated with his family to southern California in the 1920s rising through the ranks of the American education system to become the first Hispanic principal of a junior and senior high school in San Diego, the second Hispanic to be a college president in California, and to serve in the administrations of four U.S. presidents? Armando Rodriguez spoke no English when he first set foot in the United States and was just old enough to start school in a district with few Spanish-speaking teachers. But with parents who emphasized the importance of education and who taught him the value of hard work, Armando Rodriguez became fluent in English, received a doctorate in bilingual education, and was instrumental in developing the field of bilingual education while serving as Assistant Commissioner of Education for the nation. Rodriguez recalls his inspirational journey from a short child who was so dark he was nicknamed “Shadow” to being influential in shaping education on district, state, and national levels. Some still call him Shadow, though it is now spoken with respect and admiration for an immigrant who overcame many obstacles to become an instrument of change for his country. Armando Rodriguez lives in El Cajon, California, with Beatriz, his wife of fifty-eight years. Keith Taylor is a retired U.S. Navy officer and was a long-time columnist for The Navy Times. Lionel Van Deerlin is a former U.S. Congressman from San Diego, California, and is professor emeritus of journalism, San Diego State University, and a columnist for The San Diego Union-Tribune. Biography ★ Chicano Jacket illustration: Beatriz and Armando Rodriguez, and President Jimmy Carter, 1978. Courtesy of the author. Jacket design: Kathleen Sparkes University of New Mexico Press unmpress.com ★ 800-249-7737 xHSKIMGy343819zv*:+:!:+:! isbn 978-0-8263-4381-9 From the Barrio to Washington Rodriguez Taylor An Educator’s Journey ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ “Overcoming many obstacles to success, Armando Rodriguez has led an exemplary life of public service in government and education. His memoir will be an inspiration to those seeking better lives for all.” —President Jimmy Carter, Nobel Peace Prize Winner and author “Armando Rodriguez offers the gift of his fascinating life in this timely and candid autobiography of a poor immigrant child who arrived speaking no English and climbed the entire staircase of the American dream to power in Washington.” —The Honorable Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton, Delegate, District of Columbia ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ From the Barrio to Washington ...