When he walked across the stage to receive his diploma with Edison Career & Technology High School’s Class of 2016, Jose Laracuente was the first member of his family to graduate high school. And today, he’s also the first Laracuente to walk down fashion-show runways as a professional model.
“I love fashion. I always have,” Laracuente says. “In my yearbook there were pictures of me, always with a tie or with something dressy. Even then, I think I knew what I was meant to do.”
Originally from Puerto Rico, Laracuente relocated as a child with his family to New York City and eventually Rochester. While at Edison Tech, he found critical support from Hillside Work-Scholarship Connection—and from Brenda Ortiz, his HWSC Youth Advocate.
“Hillside was such a help,” he recalls. “There was a point when I wanted to give up and work—to help my family, you know? But Brenda motivated me to keep going. She told me I had to push myself to the max. She didn’t give up on me, and I didn’t give up on myself.”
Today, the 27-year-old lives in New Jersey while working in New York as a model and actor—from international runway shows and print advertising jobs, to appearances on shows like “Power Book III: Raising Kanan”—while also teaching classes for aspiring models.
“Education is so important to everything in life,” he says—a lesson he imparts to his students. “If you want to be a model, that’s wonderful, but you won’t be a model for the rest of your life. You have to learn more to have more opportunities.”
Recently, Laracuente returned to Rochester to present a weeklong Fashion Boot Camp to current HWSC students (pictured above), part of the program’s annual Summer Academy activities. Participants learned model walks and poses, as well as how to prepare self-promotional materials that are critical to success in the fashion industry. The week ended with a fashion show where the students displayed what they had learned—including a newfound sense of confidence.
“Not all of them may get into modeling or fashion as a career, but that’s OK,” Laracuente says. “The most important lesson I wanted to teach them was to be confident about who they are—that they’re beautiful, inside and out.”
Laracuente says the most valuable skill he’s developed is motivation—a trait he says owes much to his experience in the HWSC program. “It takes a lot of dedication and passion to do this. When I have doubts, I remind myself of who I am. It gives me strength.”
“He learned so much as a student, and he’s carried on what he learned with us into adulthood, and into his career,” says YA Brenda Ortiz. “I’m so proud of him.”
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