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Brandon Escobar was nervous as he walked into his honors astronomy class for the first time during his senior year. He had never been in an honors class before, and he was worried that he couldn’t do the work.
Teacher Mr. Jeffrey Deabner encouraged Escobar and assured him he’d be fine. But as the year went on, the doubt returned.
“As we got into the year, there was a lot of math involved that I thought I wasn’t going to be able to do,” Escobar said.
Mr. Deabner stuck with him, offering guidance and help along the way. The math clicked into place, and with it came a self-realization that Escobar really did have potential. In late August, Escobar will begin taking studying physical therapy at the Community College of Allegheny County. It’s a position he’d have never imagined being in several years ago as his grades languished. But thanks to the influence of teachers like Mr. Deabner, Mr. Larry McKern, and Mrs. Mariann Reilly, as well as a change in his own mindset, Escobar is on a new, positive path.
“Just overall, the staff members in the school are really, really kind,” he said. “If you just go out of your way, just try to have a chat with them, you'll see who they truly are, because they're genuinely nice people. They help you out a lot.”
Escobar moved into the Steel Valley School District during third grade. Future goals were never really on his mind.
“Because of the environment I was in and the friends I had, I wasn’t really focused on what I wanted to do or what I was going to do,” he said. “None of that really set in. I was just kind of enjoying the moment.”
A year or so into high school, that all changed.
“I was like, ‘Oh, snap. I’ve got to make changes,” he said.
Putting that changed mindset into practice wasn’t easy.
“It was hard. I had stuff that I had to deal with back at home,” he said. “And I had procrastination, which I'm sure a lot of students have to go through.”
He was determined, though. It took time, and it took some help. He took the initiative to visit Mrs. Reilly, Mr. McKern, and Mr. Deabner after school or during lunch. They offered encouragement and advice. Most importantly, they were there when he needed them.
“I was hesitant at first, because I thought from my background, I would be kind of iffy and they wouldn't know how to precisely have responses,” Escobar said. “But I felt comfortable with them, and they took me in with open arms and said, ‘Hey, we'll do our best to help you out. We'll do our best to give you advice.”
They took every step to uplift him. They reminded Brandon that he was smart, that he belonged in more challenging classes.
“It was just self-doubt that kind of would take me down,” he explained.
Along with the guidance and encouragement from teachers, Escobar found another outlet by being active. He played football until his senior year, and it was in the weight room where he found a place of comfort and solace.
“Lifting and football were two of those things that really helped with my overall mental health, physical health, emotional state, mental state, and everything,” he said.
It became a tool to help him focus, set everything else aside, and just push the weights. Afterward, he could come back to reality and take on the challenges in front of him.
“That's just from my own point of view,” he said. “I think for someone else, it could be different. It could be it could be going outside and just walking. It could be just be hanging out with friends and it could be going up to the pool. It could be just reading books, so it's different for everyone.”
That self-doubt kept trying to sneak in. It was there his senior year in Mr. Deabner’s class. And it was there as he tried to figure out what would happen after graduation. He didn’t know what his future would hold, and it began to stress him out. His teachers picked up on it, as did Mr. Olando Dulin, an assistant football coach and Steel Valley’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Coordinator.
It was Mr. Dulin who helped him find a path to enroll at CCAC. At first, Brandon was in disbelief.
“I was full on cheesing and smiling, because now I have a shot at continuing my education,” he said. “I would have never thought I would have been able to have a higher education after high school.”
As he prepares for his first college classes, Escobar seems grateful and excited for his future. He may try to explore opportunities he learned about during his time in the CNX Mentorship Academy, which connects students with opportunities in emerging fields and technologies, including oil and gas. He’d like to try balancing college classes with one of those opportunities. In the meantime, he’ll also serve as a mentor to his younger sisters, Cielo, a sophomore, and Alexa, a fifth grader.
“I've done my best to be a good role model for both of them,” he said. “So, I think they’ll be fine.”
He also has a few words of advice for Steel Valley students who might find themselves in a situation similar to his.
“You can always find care and love at that school. You can't just expect it to come to you when you're not searching for what you want,” he said. “I cherished every single year of it, the teachers, the memories, my friends, every single thing to the last drop. Just be careful who you hang around with and choose the right people to be with.”