From the president
Rafael Montero is an impactful campus and civic leader motivated by a deep commitment to social justice. An anthropology major who is also pursuing a minor in health studies, Rafael is passionate about educating people about the challenges of health-care access and political representation faced by Puerto Ricans on the island and on the mainland. As a Center for Peace & Global Citizenship Fellow, he undertook an internship in the Senate of Puerto Rico where he wrote a legislative measure that aimed to address how gentrification impacts survivors of gender-based violence. Rafael currently represents the student body as Co-Chair of Haverford’s Honor Council, working for the good of all students, while focusing on the voices and interests of the BIPOC student community. While managing the ongoing work of the Council, Rafael has simultaneously invested energy in its improvement and evolution toward antiracist practices and policies.
Personal Statement
My biggest professional aspiration is to work towards systemic change as a public service leader in Puerto Rico, my home country. For me, achieving systemic and structural change is the highest level of public service because systems are the roots of, both, the problems that people face and the solutions that people have available to them. Additionally, one of my main goals is to work to change systems while listening to and valuing the voices of the people who are oppressed by these. This is a crucial part of what I envision public service must be in order for the political system and public service leaders to actually serve people, not the other way around. Therefore, during my professional career, I want to contribute to addressing the lack of collaboration the government has with community organizations, activists, and marginalized people. My hope of doing this work stems from public service since it gives me the opportunity to be the difference and contribute to creating solutions to the most challenging problems in Puerto Rico. To do that, I have to prepare myself adequately and center my work on prioritizing people’s voices and believing in the immense potential of systemic change.