How do you get community leaders from financial services, medicine, business and even the Tulsa County Sheriff to take the stage and dance?
Raise money for a good cause.
The annual Dancing with the Tulsa Stars competition recently featured competitive ballroom dancing paired with fundraising in support of San Miguel School, which has been helping children from challenging environments achieve academic and personal success for 20 years.
One of the dancers at the event was Jhoanna Astudillo, Hispanic segment leader at BOK Financial®, which began engaging with the school in 2022, and most recently pledged $10,000 to support the fundraiser.
“When they asked me to dance, I was nervous, but I couldn’t say no. I knew I was already going to attend, so I thought, why not!” Astudillo recalled. “I do things for San Miguel because I see the incredible work they do for the kids. Investing in these kids is a no brainer, so I’m going to dance.”
“I do things for San Miguel because I see the incredible work they do for the kids.”- Jhoanna Astudillo, Hispanic segment leader at BOK Financial
Not your typical middle school
Most students arrive at San Miguel School behind in their academic development—often by two or more years, according to the school’s website. To help the students achieve academic and personal success, the school has a rigorous curriculum, with a special emphasis on language arts and math.
It also focuses on character-building through values such as perseverance, responsibility, positivity and service, which is reflected in their motto: “Enter to learn and leave to serve.” The school maintains small class sizes, with a 12:1 student-to-teacher ratio to ensure each student receives the individual attention necessary for academic success. The result: most students graduate at or above grade level.
Juan Miret, director of San Miguel, expressed the essence of the school as “a testimony to how a group of children can thrive in a caring and nurturing environment where people believe in them, where they feel they belong and where they can contribute.”
San Miguel School operates primarily on donations, grants and fundraising efforts, with 95% of its operating funds coming from these sources. The parents of San Miguel students contribute to the school through a modest copay but mostly by volunteering their time and talents.
Other volunteers come from the community, including from BOK Financial.
“Our partnership with San Miguel goes beyond financial support,” Astudillo said. “We are committed to the school, actively participating in volunteer programs, serving as ambassadors and advocating for the school’s mission to support the critical role education plays in these children’s futures.”
BOK Financial’s commitment to San Miguel School is an extension of the company’s Hispanic/Latino strategy, which aims to deepen engagement with Hispanic/Latino individuals and communities, increase financial literacy, and improve financial health.
While San Miguel School accepts students regardless of their race, nationality or religion, many students come from Spanish-speaking households and are the first person in their family to attend high school and eventually college.
“The school offers a place not only for the kids, but their entire families,” said Astudillo. “The teachers, admin, students and parents all have skills and talents they provide to each other and that creates a beautiful place. They have more parent volunteers than they have jobs for them sometimes.”
A natural talent pipeline
As it turns out, San Miguel School has unknowingly contributed something back to BOK Financial—two valued employees. Edgar Rojas and Joseph Mazariegos notified bank leadership they were graduates of the school after the partnership was forged.
Both Rojas and Mazariegos credit their success in banking to the lessons they learned at San Miguel. Rojas, now a foreclosure specialist, was part of the first graduating class. Born in California but raised in Mexico, Rojas was academically behind when he arrived back in the United States because of the steep language barrier. He applied, interviewed and was accepted to San Miguel School. After three years there, he was accepted at a competitive private high school.
Mazariegos, now a bilingual personal banker, applied the lessons learned at San Miguel towards his educational journey allowing him to eventually earn a B.A. in Economics from the University of Oklahoma where he was on the Dean’s honor roll all four years.
“San Miguel taught me a service-based leadership approach that continues to drive my life as a young professional,” Mazariegos said.
Rojas is still friends with many people from the school today. In middle school, they were obsessed with soccer, a tradition they have kept alive by continuing to play together as adults. Mazariegos and Rojas continue to participate with the San Miguel community, most recently volunteering at the school for a United Way Day of Caring project.
Rojas and Mazariegos’s successes are not an anomaly. Other former San Miguel students have gone on to become entrepreneurs and earn degrees in economics, molecular biology and pharmacology. Current students dream of becoming doctors, scientists, and architects, and thanks to the strong foundation they receive at San Miguel, these dreams are well within reach, Astudillo said.
“San Miguel is not just a philanthropic effort. We are supporting an organic talent pipeline for the company while nourishing the communities we serve,” she said. “The fact that two of our employees are San Miguel alumni makes this partnership even more meaningful.”
. © 2024 BOKF, NA.