Promoting Dialogue about Who is an American

Jose Antonio Vargas was born in the Philippines; when he was twelve, his mother sent him to live with his grandparents in Mountain View, CA. Jose first learned of his immigration status when he was 16 and tried to obtain a CA drivers licence.  Jose's high school English teacher introduced him to journalism and he did an internship at the Mountain View Voice.  He earned a degree in political sicence at San Francisco State University.  Later he was part of The Washington Post team that won the Pulitzer Price for Breaking News Reporting.

Vargas founded Define American, a nonprofit organization to open dialogue about criteria people use to define who is an American.  His memoir, Dear America: Notes of an Undocumented Citizen, was published in 2018. Also in 2018 the Mountain View Whisman school board members named a new school after Jose Antonio Vargas. Vargas announced in January 2025 that he had obtained a 3-year O-1 "extraordinary ability" visa.

https://www.mv-voice.com/news/2018/06/21/board-votes-to-name-school-after-jose-antonio-vargas/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jose_Antonio_Vargas