State Liaison
Born and raised in Meriden, CT, Julio is a product of Wesleyan University Upward Bound and Central Connecticut State University's Sociology Program. Also, a proud son of Puerto Rican Parents, Maria and Julio, who he credits for all of his "success" . Growing up, education was a priority in the household. The expectation was to be a strong student, critical thinker, and a leader in the community. Julio’s experiences with Upward Bound and Sociology made him value being a First-Generation College Student and allowed him to find his passion within the world of Education. Being taught to take advantage of as many opportunities that come his way, Julio has been able to work at several universities in Connecticut and Southern California. He loves to travel, hike, write poetry, and try new foods (follow his food adventures on IG @joolzeatz).
Julio’s adventures have led him from Connecticut to San Diego, and back! Currently, he is celebrating his 4 year anniversary as an Assistant Director with TRIO Programs! Julio works very closely with Student Support Services: Teacher Prep, helping future educators with coursework, cultural competencies, and navigating their journey as a teacher. He have been blessed to work with hundreds of students, most from New Britain, CT, and provide them with exposure to conferences, student success, summer bridge programs, and life changing experiences. Julio credits the students for teaching him much more than he could ever teach them, but mostly that persistence and resilience are skills needed at any age and for any profession. Julio believes that he has the coolest job in the world and feels blessed to cultivate relationships with wonderful students and staff on that campus that taught him how to be a man. To Julio, education is not only a tool to obtain better jobs and higher earnings, but also a way to fuel the mind and to help solve social problems. "What we do in life, echoes in eternity." Julio hopes to work hard enough for his name to continue echoing in the name of Education. “Accept where you are, accept what you have, accept who you are ~ do what you can with all of that and let it be enough.”