Simon Rodriguez, Jr.
Alumni, educator, community activist; These are just a few of the words that describe Waubonsee’s Featured Alumnus for September 2021. Simon Rodriguez, Jr., is an Army National Guard veteran and the son of immigrant parents from Ciudad Juarez, Mexico. A 2011 graduate and the first in his family to graduate from college, Rodriguez, credits the zeal he has to serve his community today because of the support and the foundation he received as a student at Waubonsee. Rodriguez is a success story for how he actively seeks to connect and serve his community. The college’s board of trustees recognized Rodriguez at their regularly scheduled meeting on September 15, 2021.
Rodriguez, who grew up on the East Side of Aurora, attended East Aurora High School. Unsure of his future then, Rodriguez joined the Army National Guard and served in the Infantry for nearly four years. Wondering where to go next, Rodriguez enrolled as a non-traditional student at Waubonsee, working a civilian job while serving in the military to pay for tuition out-of-pocket.
“Waubonsee was the leap I needed for the rest of my life. It was a smooth transition to figure my life out, learn how to set my expectations higher, and reach back to pay-it-forward to someone else,” said Rodriguez. He believes his time at Waubonsee showed him that not only could he get a college education but that he could also become a model student to encourage others.
After graduating from Waubonsee, Rodriguez went on to graduate with honors at Illinois State University. He received a prestigious national Fulbright scholarship which allowed him to live and study in Mexico and England. Following his time overseas, Rodriguez returned to his alma mater, East Aurora High School, to teach bilingual social studies for over four years. In this role, he took the first group of Illinois high school students on a cultural exchange to Cuba in 2017, followed by a study-abroad experience to Spain and Italy in 2019.
Encouraging young people to follow their dreams is both satisfying and rewarding for Rodriguez, who believes that young people can become inspired when they can see themselves in the leaders of their community. This process often happens organically when youth see leaders that look like them, who share the same cultural background, and who go on to become successful in their careers. “I stand on the shoulders of great giants at Waubonsee because they saw me and took the time to invest in me personally,” Rodriguez said. “The more we invest in our youth, the better the future of our city will be.”
Today, Rodriguez serves as the Youth Services Manager for the City of Aurora. In this role, Rodriguez coordinates and works with community partners to bring various programs to the diverse youth of Aurora. Programs include summer camps, after-school programs, the annual Sports Festival, youth resource fairs, City of Lights tournaments, Youth Court program, the Aurora STEAM Academy, back-to-school fairs, the Aurora Youth Council, mentorship programs, and more.
Rodriguez is an example of how the transformational power of education, grass-roots organizing, and community-based partnerships can successfully meet the needs of the Latino community. He has served as a member of the League of United Latin American Council (LULAC) since 2014. LULAC advances the economic condition, educational attainment, political influence, health, housing, and civil rights of the Latino population of Aurora, Illinois, and the surrounding Fox Valley area. Additionally, Rodriguez serves as Vice President of the Illinois State Latinx Alumni Network and is a precinct committeeman for his ward. During the 2018-2019 academic year, Rodriguez also served as a mentor for male students of color enrolled in Waubonsee’s Triumph program.
