Humberto Palacios

Santa Ana, CA

Humberto Palacios attends Santa Ana College and dreams of becoming an internet entrepreneur. “I dream big like Bill Gates and Steve Jobs….my goal is to start an online business, and to also become a philanthropist to give back to my community and to the world.”

Humberto graduated from Sunburst Youth Academy, a National Guard Youth ChalleNGe Program that helps high school dropouts get back on the path to graduation. At the academy, he became more open-minded and had similar goals as the other teens enrolled in the program. “We were all tired of letting our circumstances control our lives. We all wanted to get on the right track.”

Since graduating from Sunburst Youth Academy, Humberto has participated in the Senator Lou Correa’s Young Senators Program. In addition, he shared his ChalleNGe story with thousands, including Congresswoman Grace Napolitano and other policymakers on Capitol Hill. Humberto also participated in the 2014 GradNation Summit hosted by America’s Promise Alliance where he was able to share his views on the dropout crisis with influencers within the education community.

Humberto now lives by the quote “Believe you can, and you are halfway there.” –Theodore Roosevelt

Sponsoring Organization: National Guard Youth Foundation