Jose Alamillo, professor of Chicana:o Studies at CSU Channel Islands, was honored for his work to help Latinos and undocumented students. Courtesy photo.
CAMARILLO — Jose Alamillo, professor of Chicana/o Studies at CSU Channel Islands (CI), was honored for his work to help Latinos and undocumented students break barriers and excel in higher education. The Ventura County chapter of the Mexican American Bar Association (MABA) presented Alamillo with its Access to Justice Award on Oct. 17. The award was one of two given to outstanding community leaders who promote the advancement of Latinos at MABA’s Annual Scholarship Dinner.
“What is noteworthy about Professor Alamillo is that he is Mexican-born, he was raised here in Ventura County, he benefitted from the Educational Opportunity Program, and he has attained incredible academic achievements, making him the perfect example of what can be done when a person is determined and cares about helping our society,” MABA said in a statement. “Recognizing that many of his students are the first in their families to attend a university, (Alamillo) dedicates time far above and beyond what is called for by his position to guide students in choosing courses, securing financial aid, and navigating the myriad other choices and options available to them, and for which many have no other guide.”
Born in Zacatecas, Mexico, Alamillo came to the U.S. as an undocumented child at the age of 8, following parents who were migrant farmworkers. Growing up in Ventura, he took part in UCSB’s Educational Opportunity Program, encouraging minority students to pursue higher education. After graduating from UCSB, Alamillo earned his master’s and Ph.D. at University of California Irvine and taught at Washington State University. He returned to Ventura County in 2008 to help CI build its Chicana/o Studies program.
“I feel very honored and humbled by this award,” Alamillo said. “This confirms that I’m doing the right thing by making sure my campus provides access and resources to undocumented students. As an undocumented student once myself, I remember how concerned I was about attending college without federal financial assistance. This personal experience motivates me to continue helping undocumented students in the future.”
Alamillo recently assisted an undocumented student who was on the verge of dropping out and becoming homeless because of lack of financial support. With Alamillo’s help, she got a part-time campus job and aid from local churches, enabling her to continue her studies and cover living expenses. He also encouraged the student to share her story in class as part of an assignment on the DREAM Act.
“Students were in tears,” he said. “They rallied around her and helped her form CI DREAMers, a newly registered CI student club supporting undocumented students and educating members of the community about current immigration issues. I am one of two faculty advisors for this new club.”
Alamillo is also highly recognized for incorporating community and service-based projects in his classes. With the Bracero Project, Alamillo and his students documented and showcased the stories of dozens of former Ventura County farmworkers who played a key role in the nation’s agricultural history. Their work became part of a traveling exhibition by the Smithsonian, now a permanent exhibit in Piru. His classes have also preserved the history of the multi-ethnic working-class Wagon Wheel neighborhood in Oxnard and explored Cuba in a travel course entitled “Cuba Today” with Professor Stephen Clark. Alamillo’s efforts earned him CI’s 2014 Faculty Award for Community Engagement.
Alamillo also dedicates himself to community causes, serving on the Tequio Scholarship Committee of the Mixteco/Indigena Community Organizing Project and on the Advisory Board of Clergy & Laity United for Economic Justice-Ventura County. He is known throughout Ventura County as an authority on U.S. immigration law and policy, and often lends his time as a volunteer docent for museum exhibitions depicting the stories of farmworkers and their families.
“MABA is proud to honor a person who perfectly exemplifies the ideal of ‘lifting as you rise,’” the group stated. “He has opened doors of opportunity, and he has worked to ensure that they stay open, granting passage to countless young people and their families after him.”