LYNN — Esteban Cubides Ramirez graduated valedictorian from Lynn Vocational Technical Institute Monday, and plans to attend MIT this fall.

To thank the Lynn Public Schools, and to share a little bit of his story, Ramirez spoke at the School Committee meeting Thursday evening.

“I’ve been asked to come here to talk about my experience as an immigrant in school, and how I’ve dealt with it,” Ramirez said.

He told committee members that he immigrated to the U.S. eight years ago.

“I didn’t know English, but I did know I wanted to excel academically,” Ramirez said. “My parents had done a lot to bring me here, and I didn’t want their efforts to go to waste.”

Ramirez recalled walking into the classroom his first day of school in the U.S., and said he realized he was behind academically, but didn’t fault himself because he couldn’t speak English yet. 

Ramirez then said that it was the English Learner (EL) teachers that were there for him, and gave him all the tools needed to succeed.

“After two years, I was done with EL classes, I was able to just … kind of deal with high school like a normal student,” Ramirez said. “However, I still had issues inside. Like, I felt insecure talking, felt scared about my accent.”
He said due to his insecurities, he would refrain from participating in the classroom.

“This was the case all the way until 10th grade when I joined SkillsUSA. By this point, I knew the language, and I was excelling academically, but I didn’t quite feel like I belonged here,” Ramirez said. “In SkillsUSA, I was kind of able to overcome that obstacle. … That internal obstacle of fears, insecurities, and all those other things.”

SkillsUSA is a career and technical student organization that helps high school and middle school students become skilled professionals and career-ready leaders.

Being in SkillsUSA allowed Ramirez to step outside his comfort zone, meet new people in the community, and help those that needed it.

“My teachers and peers and my advisors helped me get through all the difficulties,” he said.

He said he was glad he spoke at the meeting that night, so the school committee knew his story and he could publicly thank his teachers.

“Looking back, I’d say that two things were vital to my growth. One was the EL classes,” Ramirez said.

Ramirez said he saw a lot of people get frustrated and “call it quits” while participating in the classes, but he and those around him pushed him to keep going.

“Secondly, my teachers, the school staff, and my friends all helped me grow emotionally, mentally, and all those other things,” Ramirez said.

The school committee members, Mayor Jared Nicholson, Superintendent Evonne Alvarez, and everyone in the room applauded Ramirez for sharing his story.