TEXANS CAN!, a nonprofit organization of public charter high schools, exists to educate and equip students ages 14-21 throughout the state. With academies in Dallas-Fort Worth, Houston, Austin and San Antonio, TEXANS CAN! provides second-chance education for at-risk youth who are dropouts or most likely to quit school. 

“At-risk youth are kids who can’t make it in a traditional school, kids who are bored and way behind or pregnant and have to leave school,” Marquez said from his office at DALLAS CAN! Academy in Oak Cliff. “We are a free public school. We have one teacher for every 15 students and one adviser for every 90 kids. It’s a real relationship.”

Marquez, once an at-risk youth himself, grew up in West Dallas where he was one of 14 children. He dropped out of school at age 17 and began working for $1.25 an hour making corn dogs. At 19, he was drafted into the military, where he earned his GED.

After graduating from the University of North Texas in 1975 with a history degree and a teacher’s certificate, Marquez began his career in education, which includes being a high school principal and the area director of 20 schools in Oak Cliff. His effective efforts to keep kids in school were recognized by the U.S. Department of Education, where he accepted a job as Special Adviser to the Secretary on Dropout Prevention.

Marquez’s “Cinderella story” now includes a chapter in which he is leading an organization that has changed the lives of more than 38,000 students. A recent survey shows more than 67 percent of TEXANS CAN! graduates pursue higher education including community colleges and trade schools.

DALLAS CAN! senior Ashley Rodriguez is pleased with the education and training she has received.

“Other schools don’t help you as much,” she said. “[DALLAS CAN!] helps you step by step and helps you go to college and get ready for the future.”

Marquez attributes the success of TEXANS CAN! to its quality educators.

“The No. 1 thing you can do for a child is to get them the best teacher in the classroom - someone who literally cares about what they do,” he said. “It doesn’t matter where kids live or come from. Good teachers can get the best out of the kids.”