EDUCATOR PROFILE
By Carlos Velázquez
After attending Roosevelt Junior High School in Downtown San José, Consuelo attended San José High School. At this point, Consuelo had moved out of the Horace Mann neighborhood, which she described as impoverished and populated by Mexicans, Italians, and Blacks. All the Asians were in the neighboring Japantown.
“I really never dealt with the institution because I hung around the girls, and they were very protective of me because I got Cs and they got Fs and Ds—they got in trouble and I didn’t. You know, in that sense, and that had to do with my Abuelita, who would’ve kicked my pants.” Consuelo reflected. She continued, “One of these three young ladies said, ‘No, you go talk to your counselor. You have the right for her to start putting you into college-going classes.’ And so I did. Ms. Malaves, I will never forget her name, and she said, ‘No, honey, Mexicans don’t go to college.’
“I didn't know much about college, but had never been told that a Mexican couldn’t do something you know, and I just looked at her and said, ‘my friends told me to come and talk to you about this,’ and thank god my girlfriends, the Gringas really coached me.” Consuelo began to advocate for herself. “And I said, ‘I understand I can take classes, and that there are classes you have to take to go to college,’ and she said, ‘I don’t think you can. I don't think you can make it, you know,’ and I said, ‘Ms. Malaves is this… What are you saying I can do?’ Ms. Malaves explained, ‘Well, why don’t you go look for a job at Cresses or JCPenney as a cashier? You know you're sharp, and I'm pretty sure you could do that.’ I wanted to learn more about the classes, but Ms. Malaves was firm, ‘I’m sorry, but I’m the counselor.’
Consuelo ran into her friends, some of whom had plans to go to the City, and began to recount how she had been treated. Mexicans don’t go to college. Asians, yes; whites, yes; black and brown, no.
“They freaked out. I didn't know what they would do,” recounted Consuelo. They went to talk to their favorite teacher, Mr. Agdu, who told them, "Are you sure?" They were advised to go speak to their counselor, Mr. X.
Mr. X was shocked to hear how Ms. Malaves treated Conny. Consuelo invited him and another student to attend their next meeting.
Mr X replied, "I will talk to her."
Confronting Ms Malaves, Mr. X said, "You know what? You’ve got a full plate, Ms. Malaves. I think I would like to take Consuelo under my wing with some of the other girls she’s close to. Is that ok?”
“Yeah, but she wants to attend college,” Ms. Malaves remarked.
“Yeah, I’ll work on that.”
Consuelo went to San José Community College alongside two other Chicanas. Consuelo was the link that got them there. When she heard how these Chicanas had been treated by their counselor, she advised them to speak to her counselor.
Consuelo’s experience from the 1950s still reflects the reality at San José High, which is rated 3/10 for equity and 2/10 for college readiness on GreatSchools.org. These scores reflect gaps in performance for historically underrepresented students in areas like state assessments, college entrance exams, AP participation, and graduation rates compared to other schools in California.
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