Urban Scholar Melissa Diana Aguirre

After navigating the public school system in New York City as a caregiver and in Philadelphia as an afterschool program administrator, Melissa Diana Aguirre grew increasingly outraged at the poor quality teaching in urban schools. As a product of New York City Public Schools, Aguirre is passionate about building an education system that grants diverse opportunities similar to those she was afforded.

Why did you choose HGSE?
I was sold by HGSE's focus on urban education, the support they provide preservice teachers through mentoring, and its renowned faculty in the field of education and school reform.

What does it mean to you to be an Urban Scholar?
To be an Urban Scholar is to delve deeper into the strengths and challenges our urban schools face today and attempt to capture a comprehensive understanding of why we continue to fail our young people, especially impoverished students and students of color. Simultaneously we must capitalize on the resources at HGSE to embark on an endless pursuit of best practices and strong practitioners with whom we can foster equity in public education and begin to chip away at the opportunity debt that still plagues our nation.

What do you think is the biggest misconception about urban schools?
We use the term "urban" to disguise what we really mean which is students of color from marginalized, poverty stricken backgrounds. We often discuss these students through a deficiency framework. The biggest misconception about urban schools is to solely regard these youth as "at risk," instead of as youth who bring a multitude of strengths to the school community including leadership capacity that we as educators can help unleash if we are willing to share the power we hold.