I knew that my strongest contribution to our community was the ability to place faith in our youth; to value and listen to them as a teacher.”
Andrea’s Story
Andrea Negrete’s passion for teaching is deeply rooted in her family experience and community. Her father emigrated from Mexico with a fourth-grade education and found employment as a farm worker. Her mother arrived in the US at the age of 15 and got married shortly after graduating from high school. “My parents served as strong, hard-working role models, making me appreciate value and pursue education to my fullest capacity.”
However, Andrea’s parents divorced, and the family experienced multiple hardships. “As I witnessed members of my Latino community share similar struggles, I began to advocate for our participation in higher education.”
Andrea earned a BS in mathematics and her teaching credential from the University of California, Berkeley. A Robert Noyce Teacher Scholar, she has been an instructor or co-instructor at several after school programs at elementary and middle schools in Oakland and Richmond, Calif., through a program with the East Bay Academy of Young Scientists. As a teacher, Andrea hopes “to challenge my students to learn the practicality of mathematics, give them the tools they may need to succeed in our society, and bridge the gap of inequities in our educational system.”