PhD student Caleb González invited to Vice President Harris’ home, acknowledged for work in writing education
Caleb González, a doctoral student in rhetoric, composition and literacy within the Department of English, found himself in a peculiar situation in the spring of 2023.
González, a first-generation Latino student, has spent months researching the various ways in which first-year writing programs at Hispanic Serving Institutions (HSI) shape and are shaped by their minority-serving institutional focus. An HSI is defined in federal law as an accredited, degree-granting, public or private nonprofit institution of higher education with 25% or more total undergraduate Hispanic or Latino full-time equivalent student enrollment.
In fall of 2022, González taught English 1110 for the Young Scholars Program at Ohio State, which gives academically talented, first-generation Ohio students with high financial need the opportunity to pursue higher education. This experience, along with his research, compelled him to write to the Vice President of the United States.
Gonzalez covered a number of things in his letter but focused on detailing his research with HSIs and his experience teaching the Young Scholars Program.
“I had never written to an elected official, and I didn’t think that I was ever going to get a response,” he said. “It was a way for me to reflect on my teaching in ways that go outside student evaluations. Not that I don’t value that, because I do. It was a way for me to think through the meaning of that semester and try to contextualize the work my students were doing.”
González said he was further motivated by the educational backgrounds of the current administration. Vice President Kamala Harris graduated from an HBCU and President Joe Biden graduated from the University of Delaware, a public institution, while traditionally, U.S. presidents hold degrees from private institutions.
After sending the letter, González said he “forgot about it.” That was, until he received a response inviting him to the vice president’s home for a Mexican Mother’s Day celebration.
“I thought it was a joke at first and I even declined the invitation,” González said with a laugh. “As you can imagine, they asked for a lot of (personal) information to complete a background check."
Ultimately, with some research and help from a relative who works in cybersecurity, González found the correspondence to be legitimate and instantly replied.
“I didn’t know what to think, but I ended up writing back that I had made a mistake and asked if I could still register for the event,” he said. “Her office was gracious enough to resend the registration link and allowed me to attend the event.”
González was among a contingent of guests that included actors, news anchors and White House correspondents, many of whom were Latinx.
“It was quite surreal. The vice president spoke about immigration and the importance of Latina mothers and the dreams that they bring to the United States, especially for their children,” he said. “It made me think about my own grandmother. She came to the United States with my grandfather to be agriculture labor workers in West Texas. All she wanted for her children at that time was to graduate high school. She couldn’t even fathom that her grandson would be getting a doctorate degree, but here I am.”
González added that he was able to discuss his research on HSIs and his teaching as part of the Young Scholars Program with news anchors like Ed O’Keefe from CBS News and Jim Acosta from CNN.
“It was an opportunity for me to tell them that I am a doctoral student at The Ohio State University and my research looks into how we can better improve the teaching and learning conditions for minoritized student populations at HSIs across the country,” he said. “It was nice to discuss the work I am doing and the role Ohio State has had in shaping my career and learning trajectory.”
While he received his AA, BA and MFA all in the state of Colorado, González said he is grateful for the opportunities that Ohio State has provided him.
“Ohio State has really provided me with the support and resources so that I can advance the questions that I have to improve the learning conditions in my community,” he said.