America Gomez-Torres, a 2023 graduate of California’s Oakland Unified School District, was the recipient of the Dr. Michael Casserly Legacy Award for Educational Courage and Justice scholarship. Sponsored by Curriculum Associates, the $10,000 college scholarship will be used by Gomez-Torres to attend the College of Alameda, a community college, and eventually pursue a career as a teacher.

The scholarship is part of the Dr. Michael Casserly Legacy Award for Educational Courage and Justice, named after the Council of the Great City Schools’ former executive director. The annual award, now in its third year, is presented to a person who has made outstanding contributions in K–12 urban education by taking a courageous and passionate stance on the issue of educational justice and equity.

This year’s awardee was Dr. Lily Wong Fillmore, a distinguished linguist and educator who has partnered with the Council and worked with urban school districts to ensure English Learners have access to the high-quality, rigorous instruction needed to meet college- and career-ready standards.

After winning the award, Filmore reached out to the Oakland school district to select a student to receive the scholarship. “I had wanted it to go to someone who has all the qualities to make a perfect teacher someday,” said Fillmore in a story on the Oakland Unified School District website. “And I specifically asked that the person who gets this scholarship would be someone who the district would want to hire themselves, someday to teach for the district.”

As a student at Life Academy, which serves students in grades 6-12, Gomez-Torres worked in the after-school program. According to co-principal Alykhan Boolani, she served as an important mentor to the school’s youngest students.

“I’ve sat back in a number of restorative conversations where America has taken the lead in mediating a conflict, guiding young people to find solutions, and creating peace,” said Boolani. “It [was] beautiful to watch.”

“A hearty congratulations to America Gomez-Torres on winning this prestigious scholarship,” said scholarship namesake Casserly. “Her academic achievements and aspirations to give back to the school that educated her stand out among the many Oakland students who were considered.”

A ceremony was recently held at Life Academy for Gomez-Torres, who said she was honored to be given this huge opportunity.

“This scholarship will help me begin the next step in life and further my academic success,” said Gomez-Torres. “Not only that, but it will help open doors for me and my future career. Life Academy has been such a fundamental part of my life, but I am excited to see what’s next.”

Sondra Aguilera, chief academic officer for the Oakland school district, spoke at the ceremony

and said that this kind of effort is critical for Oakland Unified because cultivating homegrown educators is key to helping students achieve.

“Our students really need to see themselves in their teachers, and it’s a great program that the Council invests in to ensure that students that graduate from a district like Oakland can get the financial support to go to school, get their teaching credential and eventually come back to the district in which they grew up,” said Aguilera. “So, it’s excellent pipeline work, and we’re so fortunate to have the partnership with the Council.”

In the fall, Gomez-Torres will attend the College of Alameda and after two years transfer to a four-year university. She plans to return to her high school alma mater to teach. In addition to being a teacher, she would like to be a nurse and sees herself following a path similar to the one taken by Life Academy teacher, Dr. Emily Frank, who is also a practicing medical doctor.

“I had her for some time as my teacher, and she always talked to me about how it was, it sounded interesting,” said Gomez-Torres. I also saw teaching as something interesting to do… like right now, my summer, I’m still here, I’m still trying to help the students, the teachers, so yes, I do see it as something I will do in the future.”