People’s motivation to work with a CBO such as PESA is as varied as the individuals themselves, but it’s safe to say that a common thread for all is the desire to effect positive change for those in need.
One of the interesting side effects of performing such work is that it sometimes has an equally profound, if unexpected, effect on the staffer. Case in point: Katherine Cordova, whose work as a PESA intern and tutor-led her to pursue a career in teaching.
Serendipity often plays a part in life paths, and so it was for Cordova, who first became involved with PESA via Teen Court. While a freshman at Warren High School in Downey, she signed on to be a student juror purely out of curiosity, not knowing much about the program. By her sophomore year, she was so enamored by it that she had become the nascent campus Teen Court Club’s vice president. From there, it was a natural step to become a PESA intern, where among other duties, she had an opportunity to tutor students, mostly elementary-level and a couple of older kids, in the severely underserved Wilsona School district in the Antelope Valley. Being a bilingual child of a first-generation family helped enormously in assisting any English-language learners, but it came in especially handy in communicating with their Spanish-speaking parents.
PESA’s tutoring program is made available to any student in need, but it has proven especially impactful during the pandemic, which has seen a concurrent nationwide rise in dropout rates, declines in attendance and falling grades attributed to remote learning that has had a disproportionately negative impact on underserved communities.
Cordova has risen to the challenge. “I just really enjoyed helping and connecting with the kids,” says the 21-year-old. “There was one, in particular, a fifth-grader named Leland, who was so eager and he opened up to me about his life and his interests. Those talks sparked a bond that helped his learning. He’s such a bright, gifted kid, and I look forward to seeing him become a college student one day.”
And speaking of college, it was while at UC San Diego, where she is a fourth-year student pursuing a major in microbiology and a minor in educational studies, that Cordova herself refined her career plans, deciding that her main pursuit would be teaching. She intends to pursue a master’s degree in education after graduation, and she sees herself continuing to work with PESA.
“I have continued to tutor kids, and I truly love it. And I see my background in science playing into that. Some of my advisors at UCSD have encouraged me, saying that the teaching field needs more people with a background in STEM subjects. It will be a big asset.”
We’re proud of the passion people like Cordova bring to PESA and of the positive impact their work can have on our community—and even themselves. ■
If you’d like to support PESA’s many social and educational initiatives, please contact us.