Framing a Trailblazing Educational Journey
When Alejandra Franco graduated from Desert Mirage High School in the Coachella Valley Unified School District in 2015, she was the first graduate in school history to be accepted directly into the University of Southern California.
Fast forward ten intense years later, and Dr. Alejandra Franco has earned her doctorate of philosophy in Hispanic Studies from Emory University where she focused primarily on migration studies, United States-Mexico border studies, and the migrant agricultural community in the Eastern Coachella Valley.
Following the intensity of the doctoral program, Alejandra was reflective when thinking about her journey and her parents’ support.
“When my brothers and I we were all little, my parents always knew we would accomplish big things. I think that's something that I reflect on a lot—that I never thought that I couldn't do it. I always felt pretty confident growing up that I was going to go to university. And even when I didn't really know what a PhD was, I knew I was going to do it,” Alejandra said. “If you live with a belief that there's nothing you couldn't do, this is what that looks like.”
Alejandra shared that although her parents may not have understood the magnitude of what education could do, nor how the education system worked at all the different stages, this didn’t prevent them from encouraging their children to pursue their dreams.
Framing Educational Success
When she was young, Alejandra’s parents took the advice of a local educator on how to establish education as a priority in their family. The Francos hung empty picture frames in the hallway of their home to symbolize the expectation of forthcoming diplomas from their children successfully completing junior high, high school, and college. The idea was that when each of their children reached graduation milestones, the framed diplomas would not only serve as a signpost of the latest achievement, but as a reminder of the journey still ahead as evidenced by the presence of the remaining empty frames.
In 2000, Alejandra started attending the Head Start Program administered by the Riverside County Office of Education within the Coachella Valley Unified School District (CVUSD). After two years of preschool, Alejandra received a completion certificate that was immediately hung with pride in a picture frame inside the Franco family home.
This began an interior decorating trend that continued with her three younger brothers over the last 20+ years. What her parents initiated as something aspirational for Alejandra and her two younger brothers, has blossomed into a visual example of the fruits of their labor that they can enjoy when they walk up and down their hallway.
The summer of 2025 included three graduation ceremonies for the Franco family. Alejandra’s youngest brother, Andrew, graduated from Coachella Valley High School and is now attending UC Irvine. Another brother, Anthony, graduated from UC Riverside, and Alejandra completed her doctoral program.
For each of them, there was no question where their diplomas would be displayed.
“Those are my parents' degrees. They have all of our high school diplomas, my college diplomas, and even my brother Alexander’s medic certificate from the Army. They have all of those. It's getting full,” Alejandra said. “I'm happy for them to be at their house and displayed because I know how proud they are. I'm proud too, but I think it's a very special thing for them to see the fruits of their sacrifice and how much they've given.”
“They always told us that we were capable and never said ‘Maybe it's too expensive’ or ‘Maybe it's too hard,’” Alejandra said. “Even in the moments where I doubted myself throughout the Ph.D. program, where things did feel very tough, they would remind me of how I had gotten through much worse, and how our family’s personal hardships meant we were going to be there for one another to keep going. It's been a very beautiful moment to look back and reflect.
Over the last few years, Alejandra’s parents have both completed their GED programs, and her mother has continued taking English classes at College of the Desert. Her father started his own construction company.
Advice for Younger Students
Following her remarkable educational journey, Alejandra’s regularly shares her story to inspire other Coachella Valley-area students to continue their focus on the dreams.
She has remained connected to the Riverside County Office of Education’s Migrant Education Program and returns most summers to speak to student interns in the Migrant Career Academy Partnership (MCAP) Program.
“One thing I don't always hear that I say to students in the Coachella Valley, is to not be afraid to be someone who takes up space. Even if you feel like you don't belong, and you are aware that a lot of these spaces weren't made for you, the biggest thing we can do is to be there, and acknowledge and act like we belong,” Alejandra said. “I think it can be very scary to be in spaces that maybe our parents or even grandparents would've never even imagined for it to be a possibility. These unknown paths can seem very intimidating—especially if you don't have someone who has done it before you.
Alejandra’s dissertation was titled “A Case for Lifelong Learning Based on Coachella Valley Migrant Data and Oral Histories.” As part of the project, she compiled nearly a dozen oral histories from migrant individuals across all ages and backgrounds.
“The dissertation really gave me the opportunity to highlight my community, and how migrant stories aren't only stories of suffering or hardship, but there's also a lot of resilience, a lot of community, and a lot of camaraderie between our community that keeps us going,” Alejandra said “It was a very beautiful way for me to feel like I could highlight my community and also honor those stories in a sensitive and ethical way.”
The biggest outcome from her research revealed how lifelong learning is present not only in the educational attainment of a degree, but in the lives of older individuals that may not have any formal education.
“They may have never completed their secondary school, but there's a lot to learn from them and vice versa. Younger people who don't have the opportunity to go to college or decide not to, they are also a big part of what keeps our community and society going—sometimes taking on other jobs that perhaps we don't think about.”
This mindset shapes her message to young students in the Eastern Coachella Valley.
“Even if we don't have parents or a family legacy of people before us going into higher education, we bring so much to the table in terms of our life experiences,” Alejandra said. “These life stories hold so much value in terms of how much we are sacrificing to participate in upward mobility, and maybe our parents are already doing a lot more than their parents did.”
Alejandra believes that students advocating for themselves doesn't mean they have to neglect their family or community because it can come in different ways.
“I think advocating for yourself is such a big thing going forward, even if you are scared because it is scary to navigate financial aid. We are the ones who have to help our parents realize that there is financial aid, there is assistance, there is support, there are so many tools, and there really is no excuse to not support your children,” Alejandra said.
What's Next
Alejandra met her now fiancée while studying abroad in Oaxaca, Mexico, during her senior year at USC. After remaining connected long-distance during COVID, they now have plans to be married in April 2026 in Mexico. Not surprisingly, Alejandra’s influence led him to return to school and complete his college degree.
Currently, Alejandra is working part-time as an executive assistant and a college prep coordinator for Freedom University, a one-of-a-kind school that serves undocumented students by providing them college-level education courses and preparing them to apply to four-year universities.
She is interested in transitioning into the world of technology and user experience research.
“That's one of the things I focused on in my dissertation—just how everything is online and the digital divide is growing at a time when internet access is needed in order to participate in society,” Alejandra said. “Back when I was in high school, we didn't have internet at home and my parents would take me out to McDonald's to use the wifi, or I would take a hotspot to do my homework and complete my college applications.”
Over the next 5-10 years, Alejandra’s goal is to build financial stability and to provide for her parents as they age.
“We don't want to have the newest car and all these expensive things. We want to be able to afford to create experiences for our families, because they're living a life for the first time as well,” Alejandra said. “If I can help them experience a world that they haven't had the chance to because they've been raising all of us and working, I think that would be the most rewarding thing to be able to do.”