A Trip to Bountiful

Maybe you’re a little like me at the mere thought of being in the front of a classroom. Yesterday, I learned, like with so many other self-constructed fears, the experience can be awesome. And several of my mentors have shared the stuff that scares you most likely is exactly what you should be doing.

I paid a trip to my undergrad alma mater, California State University, Los Angeles (CSULA). And as I walked down the halls of the Biological Sciences building (hefting a bag of books), I realized I was headed to room 244; and things hadn’t changed much.

So, I don’t know for sure if #244 was the room that changed everything, but I do know it was close enough. During any attempt to negotiate the path to med or dental school, Organic Chemistry is the fork in the road separating the men from the boys and the women from the girls.

I’d been invited by Impactful Internships and leader David Rayudu to return to CSULA and speak to some gifted high school students regarding their possible future in health sciences. Somehow, David allowed his fearlessness to dominate his good sense and chose me to be the speaker representing dentistry.

I arrived on campus early, just to enjoy the simple pleasure of a trip down memory lane. And even though the campus had enjoyed steroids-type growth, opening the door to the Biological Science building created an emotional response not unlike coming home. And yeah, it’s a science building. But while my undergrad experience was studying, working full-time in a warehouse, and sleeping; it was also transformational.

I’ll just confess, I loved the group in room 244. Engaging with bright, interested, motivated, smiling young people could’ve well been the boat Ponce de Leon missed. Most of the students lived in the San Gabriel Valley; two of them were students at my high school alma mater, Mark Keppel High School, in Alhambra.

We talked about choosing one’s attitude, having a passion for a career, looking for mentors, and being open-minded. I shared about the joy of being part of a community and looking for opportunities to be generous and empathetic. The students were organized in teams developing a scientific report to be presented on graduation day…and we agreed collaboration, recognition, and fun could generate some serious magic. I also shared about the twenty years it took me to begin to learn the basics of my advice.

On graduation day, as each student was presented a certificate of completion, the young men and women shared their mission statement; it was blazing hot outside, but it was warm inside a familiar lecture hall.

I got an A in Organic Chemistry. My professor, listed on the class schedule as “Staff”, was Dr. Lloyd Ferguson, the first African American PhD to graduate from UC Berkeley. Dr. Ferguson couldn’t attend his home state’s Ole Miss because the university was segregated; it now uses his Organic Chemistry textbook. The moment Dr. Ferguson signed off on writing my dental school recommendation I began believing in my future. And today, when I’m struggling, I model the kid who showed up at Cal State LA decades ago.

I’ll be back in Room 244 next week and I’m looking forward to another reunion with much more than a building.

A mentor once shared teaching and sharing is learning; my suggestion to a classroom of some of the brightest was, never stop being curious…and never stop giving.