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When Martin Montalvo ‘75 arrived at ������ɫ in 1971, he had never been outside Brooklyn, New York. The son of Puerto Rican parents, he grew up in a household just trying to fit into American culture and get by during tumultuous times.

“The whole mindset was to survive. Try to assimilate, try to survive,” he recalled.

Montalvo’s older brother had signed up for the military, had been deployed overseas and warned him of the perils of the Vietnam War. Instead of enlisting in the military, Montalvo sought a college education. He found the cost to be a significant hurdle until a chance encounter with a former classmate introduced him to the Educational Opportunity Program (EOP).

“[My friend] informed me that there was a program in a place called ������ɫ,” Montalvo said. “If I was interested, they had a program for minorities or for those that couldn’t afford to go to school, and that’s how my college application started.”

“I was thrilled to be going to college because of all the politics around going into Vietnam, and the things that were happening in [New York City],” Montalvo said. “EOP gave me the chance to escape that and attend college, where otherwise I probably couldn’t have.”

From the moment he stepped off the bus in ������ɫ, Montalvo was welcomed by EOP counselors. He began building long-lasting relationships, including with his first roommate.

“They put me in a room with [another EOP student] named Ronnie McBride,” Montalvo said. “Ronnie and I have been friends ever since. I baptized his firstborn child and he baptized mine. We walked into the room totally color-blind. The friendship has been amazing.”

Montalvo credits EOP with helping him find opportunities academically and socially that he never imagined possible. His wife, Yvonne ‘75, also an EOP alumna, studied abroad in Mexico and Spain, while other classmates traveled to Africa or pursued careers in law, medicine and the arts.

“Some of the people that I formed the strongest relationships with were from other parts of the country, other parts of the world,” Montalvo said. “Without EOP, those doors would never have opened.”

Alumni of Color Network

Montalvo returned to campus for Homecoming 2025 as part of the Alumni of Color Network, which was relaunched in 2021 to strengthen connections among alumni and current students of color. For Montalvo, the visit was deeply meaningful. Not only was he able to reconnect with his friends and classmates from 50 years ago, but he also met with current students who expressed gratitude for the trailblazing role of EOP alumni.

“One student told me she had heard there was a legend about EOP students all living in one corridor. I told her that wasn’t a legend,” Montalvo said. “That was us. I lived there.”

Montalvo and his EOP peers lived together in the same hallway, a space in the dorms where Latino and Black students could gather, listen to Motown music hits, and decompress.

“We needed a place where we could feel comfortable in our own skin and not worry about who our neighbors were,” he said. Populated mostly by EOP students, that residence hall felt like home to Montalvo and his peers, giving them a sense of belonging and community.

Today, Montalvo continues to connect with fellow alumni, organizing monthly online reunions with classmates all over the country and encouraging current students to pursue their passions. Bonds built 50 years ago are still holding strong, and Montalvo has hopes to make trips back to ������ɫ a tradition among his peers.

“Visiting [the University] again was absolutely amazing,” said Montalvo. “I hope that we can do it again, but this time bring more of us because everybody has a different story. Every story may help a different kind of student.”

For Montalvo, EOP was more than a program. It was a lifeline, a community and a conduit to build relationships that have withstood the test of time.

“The personal growth was absolutely marvelous. It helped me survive in many ways when I graduated,” he said. “And I’m just happy to have been a part of that.”