Octavio Alvarez

Mathematics High School Teacher in Los Angeles, CA

Octavio Alvarez is a mathematics teacher at Brawley Union High School where he has been teaching traditional and bilingual mathematics for 12 years. Mr. Alvarez graduated from the Universidad Autonoma de Baja California with a major in Civil Engineering, but decided to pursue a career in teaching. During his time at Brawley Union High School, Mr. Alvarez has improved the academic outcomes for Southern California English Language Learners, and has equipped his students with the knowledge to succeed after high school. In 2012 Mr. Alvarez was recognized by the California Association for Bilingual Education for his contributions to improving the English Learner Mathematics Program as well as improving student outcomes on the California Standards Tests and California High School Exit Examination. That same year, he was selected as a White House Champion of Change by the White House and the President’s Advisory Commission on Educational Excellence for Hispanics.

Why do you teach? Teaching is a passion for me. It enables me to transfer all of the knowledge and wisdom I have gained over the years to my students.

What do you love about teaching? I cherish the opportunity to inspire and help students who have typically had difficulties with the educational system. I want to help my students succeed and prepare them for real life experiences after high school.  I also love teaching because it enables me to give back to my community.

When you were a student, was there a great teacher who inspired you? Absolutely yes. When I was a student in Mexico, I admired my math teacher because he had a lot of wonderful strategies to teach us math concepts. He liked to use many real life examples and infuse humor into his lessons that made the environment feel very comfortable. In fact, while I teach math I emulate techniques used by Mr. Cerda, my old math teacher.