Celeste Rodriguez is the new Dean of Students and Equity Coordinator. Before coming to West, Ms. Rodriguez worked in both District 87, serving as the Dean of Students at Glenbard East, and within the Chicago Public School system for 18 years, filling multiple administrative roles. Ms. Rodriguez decided to pursue education because it enables her to be a “mentor, guide, and [assistant] to the youth as they grow and develop academically.” She acknowledges that “education is not just academics, [but] social, emotional, [and] relationship building” and often needs sympathy, “empathy,” or “tough love.” Because Ms. Rodriguez did not have that in her adolescence, she has “always done [her] best to be that in [her] various roles in education.” Ms. Rodriguez supplements her personal ties to this position through her associate’s degree in English education at Wright College, her bachelor’s degree in English and secondary education at Northeastern Illinois University, her first master’s degree in reading education and ESL at National Louis University, her second master’s degree in educational leadership at DePaul University, and her future doctoral degree she intends to earn. Ultimately, Ms. Rodriguez “truly [enjoys] serving students and families” and wants “to make a difference in the lives of adolescents and assist in their academic and post-secondary trajectory.” Luckily, Ms. Rodriguez was already within District 87 when the pandemic began, so this school year has just been a continuation of such a transition.