MassLive recently asked readers to identify people they consider Hispanic and Latino leaders in Massachusetts, working to make a difference across the state.
Profiles of these leaders will be published over the course of Hispanic Heritage Month from Sept. 15 through Oct. 15. These are people readers have identified as inspirational, who may be doing good acts for their communities. They are being recognized for their accomplishments, leadership and commitment to inspire change.
Derek Estrella-PadillaSebastian Restrepo
Derek Estrella-Padilla
Age: 28
Community: Holyoke
His Story: Derek Estrella-Padilla understands what it means to be in the shoes of those he teaches and mentors at Holyoke Community College (HCC). A first-generation college student from a Puerto Rican household, Estrella-Padilla said he experienced firsthand the “turbulence of not understanding how to navigate pursuing a college education.”
During his college career he balanced a full-time workload alongside a full-time class schedule, noting this caused him to struggle. Attending a primarily white institution, Estrella-Padilla said he also found making connections challenging.
What changed this for him was his acceptance into the “TRIO Student Support Service” program and his connection with his academic counselor, a Puerto Rican woman he said became his “college mom” — encouraging him, assisting him and never letting him feel like a second-rate student.
“From this experience I learned what it meant to build community, develop my leadership, and to advocate for the needs of underrepresented students,” Estrella-Padilla said, adding that this led him to his passion for social justice in higher education.
Today, Estrella-Padilla works in a full-time role as the program coordinator for HCC’s TRIO STEM Health Science Student Support Services program. The program provides personal and academic support for students who are first generation, low income and/or have a documented disability.
Estrella-Padilla said that many communities of color in Western Massachusetts fall under these categories and that the program gives these students “equitable support and access” to become successful professionals in a health science field. Estrella-Padilla added that these jobs are “drastically underrepresented” by Black and Brown communities.
The role allows Estrella-Padilla to nurture, empower and advocate for these students and their needs to ensure their growth and development, much as his own “college mom” did for him.
Estrella-Padilla also serves as a part-time professor at HCC, where he teaches “Introduction to Latinx Studies,” in which students learn about this diaspora community in the United States, the Caribbean and in Central and South America.
“Intro to Latinx Studies provides a decolonized history and empowers Latinx students to reclaim their history, their cultures’ contributions to society, and understand they too have the right to enact change within society,” Estrella-Padilla said.
Estrella-Padilla also works to support the next generation of Latinx students, volunteering and serving as president of the Latino Scholarship Fund of Western Massachusetts.
The organization’s goal is to help Hispanic Western Massachusetts high school seniors through providing them with scholarships and mentorships to support them through their first year of college, which Estrella-Padilla noted is a significant transition period in these kids’ lives.
In His Words: “Equity and social justice work is an amazing passion to have but also a work that comes with turbulence. Find your community to build solidarity with. As the saying goes ‘If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.’ I would not be where I am in life if it were not for the amazing and supportive community that has support of my community. ¡Si se puede y más con ayuda!”
We’re always open to hearing about more inspiring people. If you’d like to suggest someone else who should be recognized, please fill out this form.
