Hector Ramirez, once helped by Communities In Schools, now teaches and advocates for struggling students in his San Antonio community.
SAN ANTONIO — A 22-year-old teacher at Five Palms Elementary is giving back to the very program that once helped him survive school. Hector Ramirez grew up in San Antonio relying on Communities In Schools (CIS) for basic needs like food, clothing, and mental health support. Today, he not only teaches in the same community—he advocates for students who face the same challenges he once did.
“I felt a lot of shame… like I wasn’t coming to school with the same resources other students had,” Ramirez said.
Ramirez was a first-generation college student who graduated from Louisiana State University in 2022. Now, he works with CIS both in and outside the classroom, sitting on the nonprofit’s regional board and helping shape its outreach to at-risk youth across South Central Texas.
“When a student walks into school with a backpack full of supplies… they walk in ready to succeed. That confidence? I remember how it felt,” Ramirez said.
Communities In Schools places licensed social workers and site coordinators on Title I campuses to provide students with services ranging from emotional counseling to emergency clothing and food. Ramirez says that support is essential, especially in under-resourced districts where services are stretched thin.
“We didn’t have a campus counselor. My student needed help. I turned to Communities In Schools. That was my safety net—now it’s theirs.”
As back-to-school season ramps up, Ramirez says the need for support is only growing. Rising rent and inflation are putting pressure on families, making school supplies and emotional resources harder to come by.
“You’re not just helping a student—you’re helping their whole family,” he said. “That’s what real community looks like.”
Ramirez is living proof that those support systems work. He says his story is a full circle moment—and a call to action.
“I’m 22 years old, and I’m a teacher at Five Palms Elementary. But I only got here because someone believed in me.”
Ramirez’s story is just one of the many reasons the Stuff The Bus campaign is collecting school supplies for kids in need across San Antonio and surrounding areas. Communities In Schools of San Antonio, in partnership with KENS 5 and H-E-B, is the non-profit organization behind this campaign.