Today we’d like to introduce you to Antonio Bustos
Antonio, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
Growing up, my family and I were living in Tecate, Baja California. It is a border town, about 35 miles south east from Spring Valley. We would cross the border every day and come to school in Spring Valley. The schools I attended were Casa De Oro Elementary School, Spring Valley Middle School, and Monte Vista High School. I went to ESS myself from 1st grade through 8th grade. I never thought I would be wearing a blue ESS shirt, but little did I know, there is a lot of power in that blue shirt. With great power comes great responsibility and I understood as the time went on that being someone for the youth is the most rewarding thing in the world. The reward is the love and smiles that you see around the community. I did not start in 2014 with the confidence I hold now; however, there were a lot of people in my path that guided me and shared knowledge with me to get to where I am today. I had a lot of experiences throughout our district, working at various sites while climbing up in positions. I am currently at Bancroft Elementary School and it is a true blessing to be able to continue to guide the youth and be an impactful person in those lives.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
This journey has not been a smooth road. In anything in life, you must face challenges. We all go through something in our lives. It is not what happens to us that defines us, but rather the reaction we give to what is happening to us. We must have grit in order to be successful. I have 10 years in this amazing district and the supervisors in ESS, Extended Student Services, have always believed that I am a great leader, even when I did not believe it myself. I have been going through some obstacles in my personal life where I wanted to give up, but I reminded myself of all the blessings that I have. My fiance has been someone who has uplifted me since the day I met her and I thank God for her.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I work at a before and after school program in La Mesa-Spring Valley School District called ESS, Extended Student Services. We are open at all 21 school sites at our district from 6 am to 6 pm, providing families a quality program for their children. I am an ESS Site Lead. I oversee Bancroft ESS with my team of Assistant Lead, Program Aides, and Recreation Attendants. We offer sports, art, inside and outside activities, homework time with assistance, special activities, parent input forum, SEL (Mindful Connections), which stands for Social Emotional Learning, and structure. Our students at Bancroft LOVE coming to our program. We have built a culture where students feel safe and they feel like they belong. We are big on having youth voice and leadership. We are teaching the future and we want our students to feel confident in what they believe and that their voice matters, no matter if you are 4 years old or 12 years old, we listen. We greet our families with a smile and ensure they know they are seen and heard. We build trust with affirmations and reassurance. Since we do provide structure, we are strict with expectations as we want our students to understand we must have structure and discipline to be successful. I am most proud of the culture we have built. We have a team full of different personalities and the beautiful thing about it is that we are able to come together for ONE bigger purpose and goal. The love and care that our team has for each other radiates onto our students and families. If you ever come to Bancroft ESS, you will feel exactly what I am talking about and that is what I am most proud of, our team.
We’d love to hear about any fond memories you have from when you were growing up?
My favorite childhood memory has to be with my grandma, Mama Haydee, and my Tata, Don Antonio. I would spend my school breaks with her and we would go up to his rancho in Chula Vista, by La Romurosa in Mexico. I would love feeling disconnected from the “fast life.” I did not know it then, but I always felt happiness being at the rancho and every opportunity I had, I would go. Waking up to the smell of pancakes and fried eggs, because YES a sunny side up egg DOES go on top of pancakes! Mama Haydee and my Tata loved me dearly and continuously showed me unconditional love. I strongly believe that is a big reason as to why I am able to be the way I am with our community. I was not the best behaved student in school, but I also feel like I was misunderstood.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://lmsvschools.org
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bancroft.ess/
