The daughter of farm workers in Calexico, higher education was the path to a better life for Enriqueta “Queta” Chavez.

    She was the first one in her family to attend college as one of the first students to be accepted at San Diego State University under the Educational Opportunity Program (EOP).

    In college during the late ‘60s, with the Vietnam War, the Civil Rights Movement, the farm workers’ struggle, and the feminist movement, Chavez decided to make social and educational justice her way of life.

    “It was an exciting time. A lot was happening at once. You either stayed back or you got involved. I got involved,” Chavez said.

    And she did: Not only did she participate in the development of Chicano Studies programs in California and in the organization of MEChA, but her goal was to help other students like her reach higher education.

    She earned a master’s degree in counseling from SDSU, and right after graduating from the program, she became a counselor at the Sweetwater High School District, where she will be retiring from in June after 34 years of service.

    At Sweetwater, Chavez, who is 60 years old, has become an institution as a counselor, someone who has been there to help students reach their full potential.

    “Enriqueta Chavez has been an inspiration for students, parents and staff of the Sweetwater District,” said Superintendent Dr. Jesus M. Gandara. “Her commitment and contributions to the Latino community is commendable. We wish her a long and happy retirement.”

    Her support of students earned her the title of Latina of the Year given out by the Adelante Mujer Conference this year, a conference sponsored by the district to encourage young Latinas to pursue higher education.

    Also, this month a group of former students recognized her work with a tribute ceremony where many of them wished her a good retirement.

    “Over the years, Ms. Chavez has touched many lives and inspired her students, colleagues, and those she mentored,” read the ceremony’s program. “Her words have brought hope, reassurance, and nurturance.”

    For the past three years, she has worked as a mentor counselor at Sweetwater, mentoring new counselors, and helping them become the best counselors they can be.

    She also teaches in the counseling program at National University, where she helps prepares the next generation of school counselors in San Diego.

    “Mrs. Chavez is one of the most dedicated counselors,” said San Ysidro High Principal Hector Espinoza, who personally selected Chavez to be the first counselor at San Ysidro High when it opened in 2002. “She’s absolutely focused on the academic and social needs of the students. She is committed to helping all students, but specially Latinos and all disadvantage students.”

    For Dario Villa, a counselor at Montgomery High School, Chavez has been someone to look up to for many years.

    “Queta Chavez has been a role model for me since I started as a counselor in the 80s,” said Villa, who worked with Chavez at both Sweetwater and Eastlake high schools. “Her philosophy in terms of student advocacy is matched by no other counselor in the district. In addition to being very knowledgeable about counseling, her tremendous concern for the students she served is present on a daily basis.”

   Villa said that Chavez taught him to see counseling more than a job, as a vocation for service to students.

   “From her, I learned that good counselors not only need the necessary skills in order to help, but that they have to go the extra step to help students get to where they have never been before,” he said.

   Her retirement has been seen as a loss for the Sweetwater District, a void that she will leave after 34 years here.

   “I believe that for her family it’s a tremendous gain; unfortunately for counselors in the district, a gap will be created,” Villa said.

   Chavez said that she will continue to volunteer in education, and she plans on continuing teaching in the counselor preparation program at National University. She said that, looking back, she knows she has done the right thing.

   “I feel that I’ve impacted a lot of students,” she said, with tears in her eyes. “I feel I’ve made a difference. I’m going to miss the students.”

   Espinoza said that, even though she won’t be working at the district anymore, Enriqueta Chavez’s legacy will live in the schools of the South Bay forever.

   “She will never retire. She will continue to have an impact on students for the rest of their lives. Her legacy will live on. Students will always remember what she did for them.”