April Hernandez-Castillo speaks to PHS students about success in life.
Famous actress turned motivational speaker, April Hernandez-Castillo, rallied the PHS student body on October 7. Naturally skeptical students were immediately brought to their feet, laughing and supporting the spirit of learning and success. Mrs. Hernandez-Castillo used humor and great energy to enliven students, even during period 1!
Humor and energy were not the message, just the vehicle for her message of creating a culture of education and success in the lives of each and every student. As a representative of the United States Hispanic Leadership Institute (USHLI), Hernandez-Castillos spoke of growing up as a minority in a poor neighborhood, in Queens, New York.
Playing in the streets with drug vials set her up for failure, but she had a good home life. Her father taught her that she needed to work hard and focus her life on success or be caught in the trap of poverty that affects so many minorities.
Overcoming the personal adversities of poverty and then the abuse of her boyfriend, she found that through education, hard work and perseverance she was able to find success. Through financial and career success, especially after the film, Freedom Writers, April saved her parents from their poor neighborhood and changed their lives forever.
Her message to the students of PHS is that everyone has the ability to achieve success, regardless of their race, gender, or ethnicity, resounded with the students of PHS.
Students left the Shirelle’s Auditorium elated empowered to change their own lives for the better. They know now that they have the power to change their own lives for the better. The power for change is in all of us.
This assembly was made possible by a program from USHLI, which is a Chicago-based national, nonprofit, nonpartisan, tax-exempt organization.
The USHLI has developed into one of the most powerful, nationally and internationally recognized Latino organizations in the country by organizing and conducting nonpartisan voter registration and leadership development programs in 40 states. This organization has been able to maintain a stable presence in hundreds of communities over the years by promoting empowerment and civic responsibility.
— Cindy Tineo
