At the Law Magnet, leadership is more than a title—it’s a commitment to growth and impact. For senior Hannah Castillo, that commitment has taken her far beyond the classroom and onto a national stage. As our next student highlight, her story reflects not only success, but the power of culture and self-worth.
Hannah Castillo is a prominent Senior at the Law Magnet. She is involved in SkillsUSA and Law Link Crew. She’s been heavily involved with SkillsUSA since her freshman year and has held multiple leadership roles including; district president, state treasurer and now serving the SkillsUSA as a national officer. As for competition, she most recently competed at nationals with her opening and closing ceremonies team and placed 12th in the nation! Her day to day life now involves traveling across the country monthly for special assignments, business visits and member engagements as well as running national conferences.
A cultural value she carries through all her hard work is the “Being vs Doing” mindsets. She says,
“As someone who grew up under pressure, my family instilled in me that accomplishments defined my future, but never really focused on teaching me how to value the relationships I have in my life and generally just my “quality” of life. I learned through my involvement with SkillsUSA that relationships are essential, and hard work pays off (and it definitely has), but winning is not everything.”
She expresses how it’s okay to do things for yourself and to make connections with people even if they’re thousands of miles away. Some of her best friends now live across the country, and she finds herself being more open-minded because she surrounds herself with people who dream big and challenge cultural norms.
With her outstanding involvement, she carries with pride her culture’s work ethic, but also the language. Hannah tells us that as someone whose Spanish is her first language, she loves her imperfect English. She expresses the beauty of being able to use her privilege of speaking two languages in so many places both professionally and personally. She expresses “I think as Latinos, being loud about our culture is important and what better way than to use our knowledge to help our own people. Our work ethic relates really well to the fact that, if we don’t know something we’ll figure it out. There’s no giving up. I’ve seen it in my own home but in so many Latinos like myself who have had to navigate learning things not only for ourselves but for our families.”
There’s a common saying that people of color have to work twice as hard to achieve the same success—and according to Hannah, that reality holds especially true for women of color. During her time as a national officer, she has experienced this firsthand, often finding herself as one of the only people of color in the room. While she emphasizes that others do not intentionally make her feel less than, she admits that it can still feel isolating. As she explains, “it’s naturally weird not seeing someone like myself in a space where everyone else seems alike.”
But if there’s one thing she’s realized, is that she belongs in those rooms;
“I fought for my spot on my team, and I had to convince over 600 people to vote me into office. It was harder for me because honestly I feared that I didn’t belong on the national stage since I didn’t see anyone like me already on the stage.”
Months after taking the position, she has helped with Spanish translation and inclusion at the national scale, something that the organization had never seen before her. People of color can do powerful things, and while it’s a hassle to maneuver through the world, her culture and values show up in ways that change our communities in powerful ways.
“Its about perception, and knowing your worth.”
Hannah’s growth and her story reminds us to take pride in one’s culture wherever you go. As a Latina, she shared with us how it’s important to realize that we aren’t in this alone. She reflects how “people can look up to me and think that I have my life all put together but in reality I struggled a lot to find my confidence in this world.”
She expresses how in the Latino community, it’s a crucial thing to remind oneself that Latino culture is such a powerful tool that can be used as an advantage. “I remember Mr.Turner bringing in guest speakers, mostly who grew up like me. An attorney who sponsored me had shared that his mom used to clean the court house and now he represents people in court. A judge had told me stories about how when he was a kid his only “vacation” was to Mexico, and now he’s able to take his kids all over the country.”
She remarked how there are so many successful people who went through the same things as us.
As the next generation, her best piece of advice is to lean on those in the community and be proud of where you come from.
Every time she puts on her National Officer badge, she is always reminded of the privilege she has to represent such a beautiful culture and heritage, and hopes others find pride in their culture as well.
Hannah Castillo will be attending the University of Texas at Austin and will be majoring in Political Science. (Congratulations future Longhorn!)
As she continues her journey, she carries with her not only her achievements, but the values, culture, and resilience that shaped her. Her story is a reminder that success is not just about what you accomplish, but who you uplift along the way. She reminds us that even when we question where we belong, we are capable of creating space for ourselves.
Authors note:
Thank you Hannah for your amazing contributions throughout your 4 years of high school. You have been an inspiration to many Latinas like us who strive to keep moving forward while sticking to our roots! You will be missed and we wish you nothing but the best.
