Alejandro Bonilla

Background

About Alejandro Bonilla

I am a future Latino educator. When I went through the public school system, I learned about many heroes who greatly advanced technology, art, philosophy, and politics. All of them were white. The only people sharing my identity in the curriculum were pre-colonial Indigenous groups as seen through the lens of white colonizers. I learned nothing about prominent Latino figures of recent history who played just as large a role as all the white figures I learned about. This is especially true in music, the field in which I am called to teach. My upbringing in K-12 music was defined by the exploration of white musical styles and veneration of white composers' works as the highest art. Music is an artistic vehicle that drives us to explore the unknown, to be inspired by our creativity as a species, and to form a unique voice in the image of their own backgrounds and goals. Yet, none of the repertoire I mastered over the years was reflective of my own heritage. My mission is to fix that. Never should a student in my classroom feel hidden or left out of the art that has been claimed to be a "universal language." My mission has taken on a threefold approach: 1. My academic journey— excelling academically at UMass Lowell thanks to a full-ride scholarship, enabling me to focus on my studies full-time and engage with research about music and education. My grassroots journey— connecting with organizations and legislators to push for an inclusive curriculum, a push that has included a lobby day at the State House and an appearance on GBH with Gov. Maura Healey. My hands-on journey— working in Lowell Public Schools and their programs to better understand the populations they serve, while also getting firsthand teaching experience and being a gateway for a lifelong path of learning. The reality of becoming one of a few teachers of color (music or otherwise) is that I may end up being the only cultural ambassador for anything beyond the Eurocentric view in school. My calling was not only to teach, but to educate. And my way of educating is through what I've come to know and love most: through music, an art that drives students to explore the unknown, be inspired by our creativity as a species, and to see their heritage reflected in a global phenomenon. And with the bridges I am building between my passion, my career, and my community, I hope to be a pillar of what an inclusive and enriching public education can look like.