UC People: Sammy Chavez, barrior-breaker
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By Rachel Raiyani, UC Santa Cruz
Samuel “Sammy” Chavez took rambling walks among the UC Santa Cruz redwoods long before he was a student at the university. He remembers what sometimes felt like short, sometimes long drives from Watsonville, on his way to see his family. His mom, aunt, uncle, and grandfather all worked in the custodial department on campus.
“I remember visiting my aunt at Hahn and having some great memories of UC Santa Cruz, walking around the forest,” Chavez said. “But it never really clicked for me that this is higher education, and this is where I need to be.
At 41 years young, with his wife and three kids, Chavez (Rachel Carson ’25, Latin American and Latino studies and sociology) moved to Family Student Housing in 2023. The following year, he applied for a staff position with UC Santa Cruz’s Underground Scholars Program and was hired as a full-time outreach specialist— a position he still holds today.
The Underground Scholars Program connects students affected by the criminal justice system with resources to help support their transition and success in higher education. As an outreach specialist, Chavez works with system-impacted, currently incarcerated, and formerly incarcerated community college students to plant the seed of pursuing a bachelor’s degree.
Chavez’s colleagues encouraged him to apply for the Silver Slug Scholarship while he was pursuing his degree. Longtime UC Santa Cruz staff members Mary Wells and Sharon Dirnberger created the Silver Slug Scholarship in 2016 to support staff and their dependents pursuing their undergraduate degrees.
Chavez won the award two years in a row.
“I am really grateful for the Silver Slug Scholarship. It not only helped me out, but it helped my kids out,” Chavez said. “It’s helped me put my daughter in soccer camp and pay for baseball for my son.”
Chavez graduated this past spring with degrees in Latino and Latin American studies and sociology. He walked across the stage in both UCSC’s Chicanx/Latinx and Rachel Carson College commencement ceremonies, hand in hand with his youngest daughter.
“She’s seen me do homework until 1 AM, and then wake up early to go to work, take the kids to school. It was a sacrifice, but it was worth it in the end,” Chavez said. “It was a full-circle moment. Four of my family members worked here, but never got educated here. At that moment, I was showing my daughter that it’s never too late to achieve something you want to do.”
“It was a full-circle moment. Four of my family members worked here, but never got educated here. At that moment, I was showing my daughter that it’s never too late to achieve something you want to do.”
— Sammy Chavez
Chavez’s path did not directly lead to higher education after high school. College wasn’t part of family conversations, and from a young age, he faced significant obstacles that derailed his early trajectory. Years later, after working to rebuild his life, he was scrolling through Instagram when he came across a post.
“It was a guy I used to run the streets with. He was in a cap and gown,” Chavez said. “I knew this person, and for him to be in front of me with a cap and gown really opened my eyes to the possibilities of what higher education is.”
During that time, Chavez was working a job in construction in Watsonville, where he was born and raised. Cabrillo College seemed like a viable place to begin his higher ed journey. It also gave his two youngest kids the chance to learn at the college’s Children’s Center and Lab School.
“When I got to higher education, I really got out of my shell,” Chavez said. “I started being more social.”
What started off as one art class became a public speaking class and then a criminology and society class, and soon it was transfer season. He took a chance and applied to UC Santa Cruz.
“Once I set foot on UCSC’s campus, I knew I belonged here,” Chavez said.
Chavez is planning to apply to Master’s programs in either social work or counseling and guidance this fall.
He hopes to continue supporting students from similar backgrounds, showing them that higher education is within their reach.
“Education saved my life. Without school, I probably would still be doing construction, and I don’t know how much longer my body could do that type of work,” Chavez said. “Education is something that can never be taken from you.”