CSUCI to award honorary doctorate to local champion of migrant education

CSU Chanel Islands News

April 25, 2017 — A 60-year veteran of education who has championed the often-neglected population of migrant, homeless, at-risk or foster children will receive an honorary doctorate from CSU Channel Islands (CSUCI) during the May 20 commencement ceremony.President Erika D. Beck will award Ventura County Office of Education (VCOE) migrant education director Joe Mendoza an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters in recognition of his work as a teacher, administrator, speaker and advocate for thousands of students in need.“It is my privilege to recognize the extraordinary and transformative efforts of Mr. Mendoza,” Beck said. “He has inspired and motivated thousands of children who are now parents and professionals, many of them educators. In some cases, Mr. Mendoza’s students are now grandparents who are in turn motivating their grandchildren to become educators or invest their time and effort in education.”Beck added that, because of the programs, policies, and one-on-one work Mendoza has done with these children, they have begun to imagine themselves pursuing a college degree, often at CSUCI.“Mr. Mendoza is an ardent supporter of higher education, especially within the migrant student population and has concentrated much of his efforts on successful programs at CSUCI,” Beck said.When he got the news, Mendoza was surprised and humbled.“I keep thinking there’s a mistake here someplace,” Mendoza said. “I’m overwhelmed, to put it mildly. I can’t believe it.”Mendoza has helped generations of students in special circumstances through his early work as a teacher, administrator and in his current role as VCOE Director of Special Populations Educational Support Department. Currently, Mendoza works with at-risk, foster, homeless, teen parents, migrant and incarcerated kids, who have a lot in common, he said.Mendoza also works closely with migrant parents, giving training conferences, seminars, and meetings, in which he shows parents how to help their children succeed in school and go onto ...

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