Students and educators from across Utah gathered on April 3 at the University of Utah for the annual Latinos in Action statewide leadership conference to celebrate the program that’s a cornerstone for leadership development among Latino youth.  For Rebeca Gonzalez, a seventh-grade teacher at Ecker Hill Middle School, the day ended with an unexpected and emotional recognition. As she was packing up — preoccupied with catching the bus back to Park City and giving a five-minute warning to her Latinos in Action students — Gonzalez heard her name called by the announcers. “‘… And the Teacher of the Year: Ms. Gonzalez, Rebeca Gonzalez,’” she recalled. “I was in tears. I was just shocked.”  The moment carried added significance for Gonzalez, who graduated from the University of Utah in 2019. Returning to be honored again at Kingsbury Hall made the experience feel full circle. “It was really meaningful to me,” she said. “For my students to see me on stage and getting that award, because I do everything for them. I want to continue this work because they’re so important to me.” Gonzalez’s connection to Latinos in Action runs deep. She first joined the program as a Park City High School student and eventually became chapter president. That early experience was life-changing, she said. “I didn’t see myself as a leader before (Latinos in Action),” she said. “It helped discover this leadership within me that I knew I wanted to be, but I was scared.” Ecker Hill’s Rebeca Gonzalez is recognized as the Latinos in Action Teacher of the Year. Credit: Photo courtesy of Rebeca Gonzalez Now in the classroom, Gonzalez said she channels that same transformative experience into her teaching, emphasizing both academic growth and leadership development. Latinos in Action courses — now also offered at the middle school level in the Park City School District — are structured around student leadership, she explained, with participants taking on roles such as president or vice president and working within committees to organize service projects and initiatives. “I pour my heart and soul into (Latinos in Action),” Gonzalez said. “It’s a program and a class that I believe in because I’ve seen firsthand how it’s impacted my life and the opportunities that I’ve been able to have because of the skill sets that were instilled in me.” Beyond the classroom, the program includes a “MasterMinds” model, in which student leaders regularly connect with regional managers to ensure programming standards are met and to share best practices. Quarterly virtual meetings allow chapters from across the state to present their work, creating a network of collaboration and accountability. At Ecker Hill Middle School, that commitment translated into recognition at this year’s conference: Students received an honorable mention gold pin award for consistent participation in meetings and programming. The award was given to seventh-grade president Sophia Riqueno and eighth-grade president Daniela Villanueva. “That’s the recognition of their participation and, of course, the priority of the teacher too,” Gonzalez said. “I just try to give them as much high-level programming as I can because that’s what it takes. It’s a lot of work, but it’s the most gratifying thing for me to do.” The annual conference itself serves as both a capstone and an inspiration for students involved in the program. Participants from districts across Utah convene to attend workshops, hear from guest speakers, meet the founder, Dr. Jose Enriquez, and experience a college campus environment. Gonzalez explained that the event also includes student-led cultural performances along with the awards ceremony. Among the most competitive elements of the conference are student submissions in writing, art and film. This year, students from Park City High School took home first place in the short film category. The winning film, created by students Melani Juarez and Alejandro Ramos, centered on the 2025-26 Latinos in Action theme, “You Belong,” a message Gonzalez said resonated deeply with many participants. “A lot of us have been told you don’t belong in this country. You don’t belong in your communities, and we’ve had a target on our backs,” she said. “The message of ‘You Belong’ has asked our students to critically think, ‘How can we share this message to the whole school, to the whole community, to leaders, to teachers, that all people belong here, that everyone belongs here.’” The film depicted Park City students’ families in everyday moments — cooking meals, working in their yards — interwoven with conversations about fear, uncertainty and the experience of not feeling accepted. It also highlighted the emotional toll of seeing negative portrayals of their communities in the media.  “I was in tears because I thought about my parents. I thought about the parents of my students. And I thought about why I do the work that I do,” Gonzalez said of watching the film for the first time. “It just gave me so much hope. The students who won were actually my former LIA students, so it just made me feel so happy that they did such a beautiful job with the film.” Ecker Hill Middle School Latinos in Action students pose for a group picture outside the University of Utah’s Kingsbury Hall for the annual program conference. Credit: Photo courtesy of Rebeca Gonzalez Looking ahead, Gonzalez said she hopes to expand the reach of Latinos in Action within the Park City School District by introducing programming at the elementary level. She recently pitched the idea to district leadership, citing the benefits she has seen in other schools. Wasatch County School District has already brought the program to Heber Valley Elementary, she said. “I just believe that kids need role models,” she said. “Kids need to feel a sense of identity, a sense of belonging, a sense of place, community.” Starting earlier, she added, could help students build confidence and direction before the challenges of adolescence set in. It’s something that would’ve helped her at that age, she said. Meanwhile, her work at Ecker Hill is one way that she pays it forward. “I get to make the most impact early on,” she said. “Because I know by the time that they get to high school, if I can inspire them to already know what they want to be and how to get there, I’ve done my calling.” The post Ecker Hill Middle School educator wins state Latinos in Action award appeared first on Park Record. ...read more read less