Jaime Escalante

Escalante was born in 1930 in La Paz, Bolivia. Both of his parents were teachers. Escalante was proud of his Aymara heritage.Anne E. Schraff, Jaime Escalante: Inspirational Math Teacher ({{ISBN|978-0766029675}}), p. 12-13{{cite web|url=http://www.thefutureschannel.com/jaime_escalante/jaime_escalante_bio.php|title=Jaime Escalante Bio|publisher=The Futures Channel|access-date=2013-01-19|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130110205835/http://www.thefutureschannel.com/jaime_escalante/jaime_escalante_bio.php|archive-date=2013-01-10}}

Escalante taught mathematics and physics for 12 years in Bolivia before he immigrated to the United States. He worked various jobs while teaching himself English and earning another college degree before eventually returning to the classroom as an educator.{{cite web|url=http://www.biography.com/people/jaime-escalante-189368|title=Jaime Escalante biography|publisher=A+E Television Networks, LLC|access-date=2013-01-19}}

File:CSPAN 88 TE.webm

File:CSPAN 96 TE.webm

In 1974, he began to teach at Garfield High School. Escalante was initially so disheartened by the lack of preparation of his students that he called his former employer and asked for his old job back. Escalante eventually changed his mind about returning to work when he found twelve students willing to take an algebra class.{{cite book

| first = Jay

| last = Mathews

| title = Escalante: The Best Teacher in America

| publisher = Henry Holt and Company

| isbn = 0-8050-1195-1

| date = 1988}}

Shortly after Escalante came to Garfield High School, its accreditation became threatened. Instead of gearing classes to poorly performing students, Escalante offered AP Calculus.[https://www.staunton.k12.va.us/cms/lib/VA01000591/Centricity/Shared/Student%20Advocate/Nov11_Adv.pdf Student Advocate] staunton.k12.va.us {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220812160413/https://www.staunton.k12.va.us/cms/lib/VA01000591/Centricity/Shared/Student%20Advocate/Nov11_Adv.pdf |date=August 12, 2022 }} He had already earned the criticism of an administrator, who disapproved of his requiring the students to answer a homework question before being allowed into the classroom: "He said to 'Just get them inside.' I said, 'There is no teaching, no learning going on here. We are just baby-sitting.'"{{cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1988/11/06/education/something-more-than-calculus.html |title=Something More Than Calculus |work=The New York Times |first=Ron |last=la Brecque |date=November 6, 1988 |access-date=December 22, 2021}}

Determined to change the status quo, Escalante persuaded a few students that they could control their futures with the right education. He promised them that they could get jobs in engineering, electronics, and computers if they would learn math: "I'll teach you math and that's your language. With that, you're going to make it. You're going to college and sit in the first row, not the back because you're going to know more than anybody."

The school administration opposed Escalante frequently during his first few years. He was threatened with dismissal by an assistant principal because he was coming in too early, leaving too late, and failing to get administrative permission to raise funds to pay for his students' Advanced Placement tests. The opposition changed with the arrival of a new principal, Henry Gradillas. In addition to allowing Escalante to stay, Gradillas overhauled the academic curriculum at Garfield, reducing the number of basic math classes and requiring those taking basic math to take algebra as well. He denied extracurricular activities to students who failed to maintain a C average and to new students who failed basic skills tests. One of Escalante's students remarked, "If he wants to teach us that bad, we can learn."

Escalante continued to teach at Garfield and instructed his first calculus class in 1978. He recruited fellow teacher Ben Jiménez and taught calculus to five students, two of whom passed the AP calculus test. The following year, the class size increased to nine students, seven of whom passed the AP calculus test. By 1981, the class had increased to fifteen students, fourteen of whom passed. Escalante placed a high priority on pressuring his students to pass their math classes, particularly calculus. He rejected the common practice of ranking students from first to last but frequently told his students to press themselves as hard as possible in their assignments.

In 1982, Escalante first gained media attention when 18 of his students passed the Advanced Placement Calculus exam. The Educational Testing Service found the scores to be suspicious because they all made exactly the same math error on the sixth problem, and they also used the same unusual variable names. Fourteen of those who passed were asked to take the exam again. Twelve of them agreed to retake the test, and all did well enough to have their scores reinstated.{{Cite web |last=Jesness |first=Jerry |date=2002-07-01 |title=Stand and Deliver Revisited |url=https://reason.com/2002/07/01/stand-and-deliver-revisited-2/ |access-date=2024-04-20 |website=Reason.com |language=en-US}}

File:Westlake Theatre-1.jpg Theatre building, side wall mural of Jaime Escalante and Edward James Olmos.]]

In 1983, the number of students enrolling and passing the calculus test more than doubled. That year, 33 students took the exam, and 30 passed. That year, he also started to teach calculus at East Los Angeles College.{{cite news|last1=Rude|first1=John|title=Escalante Program Proves Its Worth|url=http://www.elac.edu/newsandevents/news-feed/2015/escalanteprogram.htm|work=East Los Angeles College|date=29 January 2015|access-date=9 September 2016|archive-date=16 November 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171116184558/http://www.elac.edu/newsandevents/news-feed/2015/escalanteprogram.htm|url-status=dead}} By 1987, 83 students passed the AB version of the exam, and another 12 passed the BC version. That was the peak for the calculus program. The same year, Gradillas went on sabbatical to finish his doctorate with hopes that he could be reinstated as principal at Garfield or a similar school with a similar program upon his return.{{cite magazine|url=http://www.reason.com/news/show/28479.html |title=Stand and Deliver Revisited |first=Jerry |last=Jesness |magazine=Reason |date=July 2002|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20020802085701/http://www.reason.com/0207/fe.jj.stand.shtml|archive-date=2002-08-02|url-status=live}}

In 1988, a book, Escalante: The Best Teacher in America by Jay Mathews, and a film, Stand and Deliver, were released based on the events of 1982. Teachers and other interested observers asked to sit in on his classes. He shared with them: "The key to my success with youngsters is a very simple and time-honored tradition: hard work for teacher and student alike." Escalante received visits from political leaders and celebrities, including President Ronald Reagan and actor Arnold Schwarzenegger.{{rp|210}} In 1990, Escalante worked with the Foundation for Advancements in Science and Education to produce the video series Futures, which won a Peabody Award.{{Cite web| title = Futures| access-date = 2019-03-02| url = http://www.peabodyawards.com/award-profile/futures}}

Escalante has described the film "Stand and Deliver" as "90% truth, 10% drama." He stated that several points were left out of the film:

• It took him several years to achieve the kind of success shown in the film.
• No student who did not know multiplication tables or fractions was ever taught calculus in a single year.
• Escalante suffered inflammation of the gallbladder, not a heart attack.

Over the next few years, Escalante's calculus program continued to grow.

In his final years at Garfield, Escalante received threats and hate mail. By 1990, he had lost the math department chairmanship. Escalante's math enrichment program had grown to more than 400 students. His class sizes had increased to over 50 students in some cases. That was far beyond the 35 student limit set by the teachers' union, which increased its criticism of Escalante's work. In 1991, the number of Garfield students taking advanced placement examinations in math and other subjects jumped to 570. The same year, citing faculty politics and petty jealousies, Escalante and Jiménez left Garfield. Escalante found new employment at Hiram W. Johnson High School in Sacramento, California. At the height of Escalante's success, Garfield graduates were entering the University of Southern California in such great numbers that they outnumbered all the other high schools in the working-class East Los Angeles region combined.{{rp|297}} Even students who failed the AP exam often went on to study at California State University, Los Angeles.

Angelo Villavicencio, one of Escalante's handpicked instructors, took over the program after Escalante's departure, teaching the remaining 107 AP students in two classes over the following year. Sixty-seven of Villavicencio's students went on to take the AP exam and forty-seven passed. The math program's decline at Garfield became apparent following the departure of Escalante, Villavicencio, and other teachers associated with its inception and development. In just a few years, the number of AP calculus students at Garfield who passed their exams dropped by more than 80%. In 1996, Villavicencio contacted Garfield's new principal, Tony Garcia, and offered to come back to help revive the dying calculus program. His offer was rejected.

File:Jaime Escalante.jpg

In the mid-1990s, Escalante became a strong supporter of English-only education efforts. In 1997, he joined Ron Unz's English for the Children initiative, which eventually ended most bilingual education in California schools.{{cite news |title=In Any Language, Escalante's Stand Is Clear |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1997-nov-13-mn-53264-story.html |work=Los Angeles Times |date=13 November 1997}}

In 2001, after many years of preparing teenagers for the AP calculus exam, Escalante returned to his native Bolivia. He lived in his wife's hometown, Cochabamba, and taught at Universidad Privada del Valle.{{cite web|title=Más de 400 alumnos rindieron Homenaje al Profesor Jaime Escalante|url=http://www.santacruz.gob.bo/prensa/contenido.php?IdNoticia=2614&IdMenu=9|publisher=Gobierno Autonoma Departmental Santa Cruz|access-date=October 21, 2014}} He returned to the United States frequently to visit his children.

In early 2010 Escalante made a final trip to the United States to pursue treatment for bladder cancer. As he faced financial difficulties from the cost of his cancer treatment, cast members from Stand and Deliver, including Edward James Olmos, and some of Escalante's former pupils, raised funds to help pay for his medical bills.{{cite web|url=https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=124491340|title=Students 'Stand And Deliver' For Former Teacher |first= Karen Grigsby|last=Bates|date=March 9, 2010|work=All Things Considered|publisher=NPR|access-date= 2010-03-10}}

Escalante died on March 30, 2010, at his son's home, while undergoing treatment for bladder cancer. He was 79.{{cite news|url=https://abcnews.go.com/Entertainment/wireStory?id=10245284|title=Teacher Who Inspired 'Stand and Deliver' Film Dies|author=Raquel Maria Dillon, Associated Press|publisher=ABC News|date=2010-03-30|access-date=2010-03-30}}{{cite news|url=http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-escalante7-2010mar07,0,6159259.story|title=From his sickbed, Garfield High legend is still delivering|date=February 2010 | work=Los Angeles Times|first=Esmeralda|last=Bermudez}}

On April 1, 2010, a memorial service honoring Escalante was held at the Garfield High School. Students observed a moment of silence on the front steps of the campus.{{cite news|last1=Simmons|first1=Ann M.|title=Garfield High pays tribute to Jaime Escalante|url=http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/lanow/2010/04/garfield-high-pays-tribute-to-jaime-escalante.html|work=L.A. NOW|date=1 April 2010}} A wake was also held on April 17, 2010, in a classroom at Garfield.{{cite news|last1=Leovy|first1=Jill|title=Honoring a legendary teacher and his legacy|url=http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-escalante17-2010apr17,0,7196329.story|work=Los Angeles Times|date=17 April 2010}}

Escalante is buried at Rose Hills Memorial Park in Whittier Lakeside Gardens. In 2016, the United States Postal Service issued a commemorative stamp in his likeness.{{Cite web|url=https://about.usps.com/news/national-releases/2016/pr16_054.htm|title=Postal Service Honors Legendary Teacher

|website=about.usps.com|access-date=2024-11-27}}

• 1988 – Presidential Medal for Excellence in Education, awarded by President Ronald Reagan{{cite web |url=http://schwarzenegger.com/en/news/uptotheminute/news_upto_en_edsumm.asp?sec=news&subsec=uptotheminute |title=Schwarzenegger Convenes Education Summit |date=September 10, 2003 |access-date=March 31, 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090226191304/http://schwarzenegger.com/en/news/uptotheminute/news_upto_en_edsumm.asp?sec=news&subsec=uptotheminute |archive-date=February 26, 2009 }}
• 1988 – Hispanic Heritage Awards Honoree
• 1990 – Honorary Doctor of Humanities – California State University, Los Angeles{{cite web |url=http://www.calstatela.edu/univ/ppa/media/cslainf1.htm |title=History of Cal State L.A. |publisher=California State University, Los Angeles |access-date=March 31, 2010 |quote=CSU/CSLA honorary doctorate awarded to alumnus Jaime Escalante '73, '77, '82 at 43rd Commencement. |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100528110802/http://www.calstatela.edu/univ/ppa/media/cslainf1.htm |archive-date=May 28, 2010 }}
• 1990 – Honorary Doctor of Laws – Concordia University, Montreal{{cite web | last=Newman | first=Elaine | title=Honorary degree citation - Jaime Escalante | publisher=Concordia University | date=June 1990 | access-date=21 October 2023 | url=https://www.concordia.ca/offices/archives/honorary-degree-recipients/1990/06/jaime-escalante.html}}{{cite web | publisher=Concordia University | title=2005-06 Graduate Calendar | access-date=21 October 2023 | page=11 | url=https://www.concordia.ca/content/dam/sgs/docs/calendar/Graduate-Calendar-2005-06.pdf}}
• 1990 – Honorary Doctor of Laws – University of Northern Colorado{{cite web |url=http://www.unco.edu/grad/forms/honorary_degrees.pdf |title=University of Northern Colorado Honorary Degrees Conferred |publisher=University of Northern Colorado |access-date=March 31, 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080407235755/http://www.unco.edu/grad/forms/honorary_degrees.pdf |archive-date=April 7, 2008 }}
• 1990 – Award for Greatest Public Service Benefiting the Disadvantaged, an award given out annually by Jefferson Awards.{{cite web |url=http://www.jeffersonawards.org/pastwinners/national |title=National Winners {{!}} public service awards {{!}} Jefferson Awards.org |website=www.jeffersonawards.org |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101124043935/http://jeffersonawards.org/pastwinners/national |archive-date=2010-11-24}}
• 1991 – Honorary Doctor of Science – University of Massachusetts Boston{{cite news

| publisher=University of Massachusetts Boston | title=Commencement features good weather, great crowd | work=News & Views | volume=09 | issue=7 | date=July 19, 1991 | page=1

| url=https://scholarworks.umb.edu/university_newsandviews/113}}

• 1998 – Honorary Doctor of Humane Letters – Wittenberg University{{cite web |url=http://www4.wittenberg.edu/news/1998/commspeaker.shtml |title='Hero' Teacher Escalante Addresses Students At Wittenberg Commencement May 9 |publisher=Wittenberg University |date=April 13, 2004 |access-date=March 31, 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060901120653/http://www4.wittenberg.edu/news/1998/commspeaker.shtml |archive-date=September 1, 2006 }}
• 1998 – Free Spirit Award, from the Freedom Forum
• 1998 – Andrés Bello prize, from the Organization of American States
• 1999 – Inductee National Teachers Hall of Fame{{cite web |url=http://www.nthf.org/inductee/escalante.htm |title=Jaime Escalante: 1999 Inductee |publisher=National Teachers Hall of Fame |access-date=March 31, 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100404065334/http://www.nthf.org/inductee/escalante.htm |archive-date=April 4, 2010 }}
• 2002 – Member, President's Advisory Commission on Educational Excellence for Hispanic Americans{{cite web |url=http://www.yic.gov/paceea/adcom/bios.html |title=Presidential Advisory Commission on Educational Excellence for Hispanic Americans |publisher=White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for Hispanic Americans |access-date=March 31, 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100527110559/http://www.yic.gov/paceea/adcom/bios.html |archive-date=May 27, 2010 }}
• 2005 – The Highest Office Award – Center for Youth Citizenship
• 2005 – Best teacher in North America – Freedom Forum
• 2014 – Foundational Award Winner, posthumously given to Fabiola Escalante (together with Henry Gradillas and Angelo Villavicencio) – Escalante–Gradillas Best in Education Prize{{cite web |url=http://www.thebestschools.org/special/escalante-gradillas-prize/ |title=Escalante-Gradillas $20,000 Prize for Best in Education |publisher=The Best Schools |access-date=March 27, 2014}}
• 2016 – The United States Postal Service issued a 1st Class Forever "Jaime Escalante" stamp to honor "the East Los Angeles teacher whose inspirational methods led supposedly 'unteachable' high school students to master calculus."

• John Saxon (educator) - teacher that pioneered Saxon math to help students with difficulty learning algebra
• List of teachers portrayed in films

{{Portal bar|Mathematics|Biography|Education|Los Angeles}}

{{Reflist|30em}}

• [http://www.boliviaweb.com/hallfame/escalante.htm Hall of Fame profile]
• {{Find a Grave|50479530}}
• [https://web.archive.org/web/20110722012621/http://www.altruists.org/f611 Jamie Escalante and the Lancaster Amish] An MP3 of a talk by John Taylor Gatto
• Jaime Escalante documented his techniques in {{cite journal |first1=Jaime |last1=Escalante |first2=Jack |last2=Dirmann |date=Summer 1990 |title=The Jaime Escalante Math Program |journal=The Journal of Negro Education |volume=59 |issue=3 |pages=407–423 |url=http://files.maverickleadership.com/jaime_escalante_how_to_teach_math_071609.pdf |access-date=2013-01-19 |doi=10.2307/2295573 |jstor=2295573 |archive-date=2014-08-21 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140821155150/http://files.maverickleadership.com/jaime_escalante_how_to_teach_math_071609.pdf |url-status=dead }}

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Category:1930 births

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Category:California State University, Los Angeles alumni

Category:Deaths from bladder cancer in California

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Category:People from La Paz

Category:Educators from Los Angeles

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Category:Burials at Rose Hills Memorial Park

Category:American mathematics educators