Why Education Policy Matters to Health
Roberto Rodriguez is a clear example of someone who does not just implement education policy for the need of it but as someone who has lived it from every angle: as a student, during his years in college working for causes like UnidosUS, as a Senate staffer, as White House advisor, and through nonprofit work.
But most importantly, because he has seen the way education shapes lives.
A Doris Duke Distinguished Visiting Fellow at Georgetown University, he previously served as deputy assistant to the president for domestic policy under President Barack Obama and later as assistant secretary of education for policy and planning.
What struck our class most was not the weight of his résumé. It was the clarity of his conviction that education is the foundation on which everything else is built.
From a young age, Rodriguez saw the example of his parents being involved in education. He mentioned how dinner conversations in his household growing up would be about his parents’ work implementing education reform on a local level, which gave him that insight from a very young age. Watching his parents advocate for children and their futures, not just teaching them but doing right by them and future generations of students, shaped his understanding that real change comes from showing up, staying, and building from the inside. To me, it was a reminder of how powerful our backgrounds can be when oriented correctly. We have the power to create real change in other people’s lives.
One of the most striking points Rodriguez made was in response to a question we all had in the room: “How do we convince policymakers [that] education and health are an actual investment and not an expense?”
One data point from his research really stuck with me: developmental differences between lower- and higher-income children appear as early as nine months of age, long before any school can intervene. For students pursuing careers in health, this is not just an education statistic. It is a public health reality and a great concern. When those programs are underfunded or dismantled, there are long-term consequences. Early childhood programs are not simply academic preparation; they are among the most cost-effective health interventions available.
Rodriguez’s visit was a good reminder that education and health care are not separate systems. As health students, it is our responsibility to do right by the communities we serve. Understanding how education policy shapes the conditions in which people grow up, stay well, and access care is not supplementary knowledge. It is foundational. His career is proof that one person, working persistently across institutions, can move the needle, and that the work is always worth doing.
Adriana Gomez-Llerena (G’27) is a graduate student studying global health at Georgetown University.