Adalberto "Beto" Guerrero

After earning a bachelor's degree in Spanish from the University of Arizona in 1957, Adalberto "Beto" Guerrero spent decades as a champion for Spanish-speaking students.

 Guerrero began his career in 1958 as a Spanish teacher at Pueblo High School. More than half the students were native Spanish speakers, yet they were placed in beginning classes of Spanish as a second language. Frustrated, the students rejected the classes. With support from the school's administration, Guerrero began an honors Spanish class for native Spanish speakers that eventually became a four-year course. Students' pride in mastering their native language and knowledge of their culture enhanced their achievements in other courses. The success of the program contributed to Pueblo receiving the Pacemaker Award from the National Education Association and Parade Magazine in 1965.

Following the Pacemaker Award, Guerrero was included in the NEA – Tucson Survey Team, formed to identify other schools with successful programs such as Pueblo's that might be emulated. The team's report – "The Invisible Minority," published in 1966 – documented school system failures to meet the needs of students who spoke limited or no English.

 In 1967, Guerrero testified on behalf of the NEA before a Senate subcommittee on bilingual education. He addressed the senators in Spanish and described the frustration experienced by students taught in a language they did not understand. The Bilingual Education Act was signed by President Lyndon Johnson on Jan. 2, 1968.

Guerrero became a full-time faculty member at the University of Arizona in 1963. In 1965, he initiated the Spanish for Native Speakers program, which served as a model for institutions across the U.S. He also was the university's first assistant dean of students for Mexican American students and led the Mexican American Studies Committee, which ultimately became the Department of Mexican American Studies.

During his time at the university, Guerrero assisted in preparing generations of bilingual education teachers. Among his special courses were Spanish for the Prospective Bilingual Education Teacher and Literatura Infantil en Español (Children’s Literature in Spanish). At the time, the children's literature course had never been taught regularly at any U.S. university.

Guerrero retired in 1994, but his legacy and commitment to the community continue. In 2014, the university dedicated the Adalberto and Ana Guerrero Student Center, a cultural center where students gather, learn and create community. Guerrero serves on the board of the Chicano-Raza Research Department at the university and previously served on the boards of the Tucson Unified School District's Raza Studies Program and the Luz Academy of Tucson.