AEASP 2022 Scholar Diego Villatoro

Diego grew up in Honduras and, in 2002, came to the US with family. Moving to the US opened his eyes to the enormous wealth disparity among nations. Most striking was the massive infrastructure of cities. Though unremarkable to most, he had only seen colonial-style towns, which paled compared to Los Angeles, CA, the first stop. After graduating HS, he joined the US Army. He felt it was his duty to serve the nation that had adopted him. While in the Army, he learned discipline, teamwork, and traveled the world; however, he yearned for knowledge and to further grow and develop. After living in various countries while on active duty, he continued to see the global wealth disparity among nations firsthand, and asked how can I be of service there, solving that issue. To that end, he now pursues an MA in Economics at Rutgers University focusing on Urban Development.