When the Doors Didn't Open, I Built My Own
Welcome to The RootED Weekly
Deeply Rooted in Education and Equity
Issue 06 | 25 April 2025
A Note from Dayson
When I first dreamed of RootED Consultancy, it wasn’t because I wanted to start a business. It was because I needed a way to honor the experiences, sacrifices, and hopes that have shaped my life: as a son of immigrants, as a student, as an educator, and as an advocate.
RootED was born from a feeling that the work we do in education and equity can't just be about systems and policies; it has to be grounded in people. In community. In stories. I’ve spent my career navigating spaces where voices like mine, and like so many of yours, were often missing from the decision-making tables. And I started RootED because I knew we deserved better. Our students deserved better.
Starting this consultancy was one of the most vulnerable things I’ve ever done. It’s a leap of faith fixed in the belief that change is possible, not because systems will willingly give up power, but because we are powerful when we ingrain ourselves in who we are and why we show up every day.
Thank you for being part of this journey with me.
-Dayson Pasión
Founder & Principal Consultant, RootED Consultancy
Digging Deeper: Why I Started RootED Consultancy
Starting RootED wasn’t part of a five-year plan. It was a decision made somewhere between exhaustion and hope. Between knowing what it feels like to be invisible in rooms where decisions get made, and believing it doesn’t have to be that way.
Quiet Dreams and Heavy Doors
For a long time, the idea of starting something on my own sat quietly in the back of my mind. It wasn’t a dream I talked about much. Honestly, I thought I would keep moving through the traditional paths, climbing ladders, making my way into leadership positions, trying to belong in spaces that were never really built with me in mind. I spent years learning how to code-switch, how to navigate, how to play by rules that weren’t made for me. It worked, sometimes. But it always came at a cost.
When my time working in the Governor’s Office ended, I thought I knew what would come next. Family, friends, and colleagues told me, You’ll have no problem landing the next job you want. I believed them, or maybe I needed to. I spent months interviewing for roles that looked perfect on paper. Sometimes I didn’t hear anything at all. Sometimes I made it to the final round, only to be passed over. Over and over again. Each rejection felt heavier. Each silence chipped away at something I had worked so hard to protect: my belief that I belonged.
It was exhausting. It was defeating. It made me question not just my work, but myself.
Betting on Myself
At some point, I couldn’t tell you exactly when, the idea of RootED stopped being just a quiet thought and started feeling like the only real way forward. Maybe my family and friends were right after all: I would find the role that fit. I just didn’t realize it would be the one I built for myself.
But none of this happened alone.
I'm deeply grateful for a partner who trusted me enough to say, Go for it, even when the path felt uncertain. I'm thankful for the people who took a bet on me when all I had was an idea. Those early moments of belief, from others when I was struggling to believe in myself, are what made RootED possible.
RootED isn’t about escaping systems that made me feel small. It’s about refusing to let that be the only story. It’s about creating something rooted in the experiences, identities, and brilliance that too often get sidelined. It’s about believing that education can be a tool for liberation, but only if we are willing to fight for it differently.
I’m still learning. I’m still scared sometimes. But I’m also more certain than ever that this work matters and that doing it in a way that honors who I am, and who we are, is the only way that feels true.
If you’re reading this, you’re part of that truth, too.
RootED Resource of the Week: Testimonio as Resistance
One of the most important lessons I’ve learned through my dissertation work is that our stories are not just personal; they are political.
They are acts of resistance.
The methodology of testimonio taught me that lived experience isn’t "just a story,” it’s evidence. It’s a way of speaking truth to systems that would rather we stay silent. Testimonio pushes back against the idea that only certain voices or ways of knowing are valid. It reminds us that real change doesn’t happen without listening to the people who have lived through the very injustices we seek to dismantle.
RootED Consultancy is built on this belief: that sharing our experiences, in our own words, on our own terms, is one of the most powerful tools we have for building a more just education system.
If you want to learn more about testimonio, I recommend this article:
Chicana/Latina Testimonios: Mapping the Methodological, Pedagogical, and Political
In the News: Anti-DEI Policies Are Creating New Barriers for Students of Color
As RootED Consultancy steps more fully into its mission, the urgency of this work could not be clearer.
A recent Education Week article, “Anti-DEI Policies Are Ramping Up—With Big Implications for College Access”, highlights how new laws and executive orders are dismantling diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts in schools and colleges across the country. The ripple effects are already being felt: students of color are worried about safety, belonging, and access to higher education, and families are left questioning what support will exist for their children when identity is erased from campus conversations.
A two-year study by the Intercultural Development Research Association found that restrictions on DEI policies in Texas have left Latino and other marginalized students feeling isolated and uncertain about their futures. With bans spreading to more states under new federal pressures, the very concept of who "belongs" in higher education is under attack.
At RootED, we believe the right to exist, belong, and thrive, without needing to hide or minimize who you are, should never be up for debate.
Our work is, and always will be, about creating spaces where every identity is valued and every student can dream bigger than the barriers placed before them.
Equity Spotlight: RootED Consultancy
This week, I want to shine the spotlight inward, not to celebrate a business milestone, but to share the heart behind RootED Consultancy and the work we are building together.
RootED exists because too many brilliant educators, students, and leaders are still pushed to the margins. Because communities that hold deep wisdom are too often left out of decisions that shape their futures. Because belonging shouldn't be the exception; it should be the starting point.
We believe education must be more than a system to navigate. It must be a space where every student sees themselves reflected, where every educator is valued for the full strength of their identity, and where equity isn’t an afterthought but a guiding principle.
RootED is about partnerships, not prescriptions. It's about listening first, moving with humility, and pushing for real, lasting change, even when it's uncomfortable. It's about understanding that this work is deeply local, deeply personal, and deeply necessary.
Stay Connected with RootED
We’re just getting started—and we want you to be part of this journey.
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Together, we’re growing something bold. Let’s get RootED.
Closing Thoughts
Thank you for taking the time to read this week’s edition and for being part of this story, whether you’ve been here since the first steps or are just joining the journey now. RootED Consultancy was never just about me. It’s about all the people who believed in a different way of doing this work, who held space when I was still figuring it out, and who continue to fight for an education system where every student, every educator, and every community feels seen and valued.
I don’t take this work or the trust it requires lightly. I'm honored to keep building with you.
If anything in today’s newsletter resonates with you, I’d love to hear from you.
We’re just getting started.
P.S.
If you’re standing at a crossroads right now, wondering if it’s worth betting on yourself, I hope you’ll take this as a sign that you’re not alone. I’m rooting for you.
