June 29th at 6pm: Join the County of San Mateo Office of Community Affairs and Poet Laureate Emerita Aileen Cassinetto for a panel celebrating Immigrant Heritage Month. We are excited to hear from immigrant students and children of immigrants, student leaders from Skyline College’s DREAM Center and Princeton Prize in Race Relations honorees. Panelists include Sandro Bautista, Eva Chen, Gilberto Silva Cortes, Josue Guzman, Jescent Marcelino, and Rebecca Wang.
Join at facebook: @CountyofSanMateo or through zoom: https://tinyurl.com/SMCStories
PANELIST BIOS
Sandro Bautista was born and raised in Daly City, CA to Guatemalan parents. Sandro has just completed his first 2 semesters as a Business Administration major and works at the Undocumented Community Center (UCC) at Skyline College. As a student assistant, Sandro welcomes students into the UCC and is also the creative and marketing lead for the center. Sandro designs event flyers, stickers, logos, social media posts, and apparel to further promote the programming and services that are provided by the Undocumented Community Center. Sandro is passionate about learning business so he can build his own company and support himself and his lovely family.
Eva Chen is the 2022 Burlingame Youth Poet-in-Residence, and the first teen poet to be inducted into the San Mateo County Women’s Hall of Fame. She co-founded Footprints on Jupiter, a teen literary magazine, to raise funds for the World Literacy Foundation, and served on the Burlingame Public Library Teen Advisory Board.
Gilberto Silva Cortes is a 2023 Superintendent’s 21st Century Award and Bay Area All-Star Scholarship Team (BAASST) recipient. He is the founder of “Deserver Art,” an art-web-platform that allows artists to share their art, receive 90% of their sales, and create a clothing brand with their artworks on it, and “Finding Our Voice,” a program to empower newcomers to learn English and receive vital resources to pursue higher education.
Josue Guzman works as a student leader at the Undocumented Community Center at Skyline College. He is passionate about helping undocumented individuals while also wanting to learn more about Science. This past Spring, Josue received his associate degree in electrical engineering from Skyline College. In Fall 2023, Josue will begin his journey at San Francisco State University where he plans to earn a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering. Josue hopes to be a mentor for other students who come from undocumented backgrounds and are interested in STEM majors – he is eager to help ensure that these new students grow exponentially in their studies.
Jescent Marcelino moved from the Philippines to Daly City in 2019 when she was 14 years old. She attended Jefferson High School where she became Drum Major, Flautist and official Centennial Poet. She is currently a Youth Speaks board member.
Rebecca Wang is 17 years old from the San Francisco Bay Area. For the past 3 years, she has founded and directed Hydra Hacks: the West’s Coast’s largest hackathon for marginalized genders in tech. Rebecca serves on the youth advisory council of the California Commission on the Status of Women and Girls, pushing for equitable access to STEM opportunities.
Aileen Cassinetto 