麻豆影院

How teachers set the stage for Christine Arguello鈥檚 ambitions and accomplishments.

It came after a particularly defeating moment in class鈥擟hristine Arguello had revealed her dream to attend Harvard Law School, a secret she had held since seventh grade. It was the 1970s, and the determined young Latina was looking for reassurance from her classmates. Instead, Arguello (Edu鈥�77) was met with blank stares and then, her worst fear, the class erupted in laughter. Her English teacher, Mrs. Poplin, went looking for the defeated Arguello after class, looked her in the eyes, and said, 鈥淐hris, I know you can do it.鈥�

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鈥淭hose seven words from a person I deeply respected were all I needed to reignite the flame of my ambition,鈥� she said. 鈥淪oon my anger at my classmates rivaled my hunger and desire.鈥�

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First, Arguello鈥檚 aspirations took her to CU 麻豆影院 to study elementary education, although her undergraduate studies were almost a near-miss. The oldest daughter in a family of six, Arguello grew up in Buena Vista, Colorado, with limited resources. Neither of her parents attained a high school diploma. At one point, her father revealed she would need to stay home to help her family despite her acceptance into CU 麻豆影院. Fortunately, her ailing mother overheard, stepped in, and insisted Arguello follow her dreams.

Her CU 麻豆影院 education was the launch pad for many laudable firsts: the first in her family to obtain a postgraduate degree; first Latina from Colorado to attend Harvard Law School; first Latina to be made partner at one of Colorado鈥檚 鈥渂ig four鈥� law firms; first Latina to be promoted to full professor at University of Kansas School of Law; and perhaps most notably, the first Latina to become a United States District Court judge for the District of Colorado, where she presides today.

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Arguello鈥檚 elementary education degree paved the way for her accomplishments and beyond. Her education degree reflects what she called her 鈥渇irst-choice career鈥� to become a teacher like her beloved fourth-grade teacher, Mrs. Cole, whose words instilled Arguello鈥檚 interest in school when she aptly called her 鈥渁mbitious.鈥� Supporting education continues to be vital to Arguello鈥檚 work. She founded the law school pipeline program, Law School...Yes We Can (S铆 Se Puede), to help guide and mentor underrepresented students who, like her, dream big.

鈥淚 know that I did not succeed all on my own鈥擨 am indebted to many people, some of whom I know because they mentored me, and others whom I don鈥檛 know because they were the people who came before me to blaze new trails for me to follow,鈥� she said.

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鈥淚 realize that there are still many such students, like me, who come from low-income families and are often the first in their family to graduate from high school or college. They lack access to the types of people and experiences that allow their more privileged peers to discern a career. I thought, 鈥榃hy should the future success of these hardworking, big-dreaming students be left to serendipity? Why don鈥檛 we do something about it?鈥欌��