Maximo Estrada

Maximo Estrada, valedictorian of Travis Early College High School Class of 2020, likes to boil everything down to its simplest form. Be it discussing philosophy at the dinner table with his family or working on math equations for the SAT, Max enjoys stripping away the layers of a topic to really understand the basic facts. This analytical nature will serve him well as he heads off to Rice University this fall to study engineering with a focus on computer science. 

Torn between studying microbiology, biochemistry and computer science, Max let the basic facts of the situation guide his college decision.

“It doesn’t really matter where I go to college, it is what I do with my degree, whatever it may be,” he said. “What I am really looking at whichever institution gives me the most money so I can excel.”

So when Max got the word he was awarded $200,000 worth of support from Rice over a four-year period through the Rice Investment, his college choice was made.

This National Hispanic Scholar with a 1430 SAT score will be following in his father’s footsteps as he begins his studies in computer engineering. Max’s dad has been a software developer for over 35 years and had recently been teaching his son the basics of programming. 

“Dad is a software developer and got his degree in 1988,” Max said. “I am finally picking up the torch and learning from him. I am curious how things will play out. Right now, he is teaching me about Java. I enjoy it very well.”

When asked if he feels prepared for college, Max answers honestly: yes and no.

“Yes, in the sense that Travis has taught me what college life is going to be like,” he said. “The fact that your success is up to you. You have to be the one to go out there and ask the questions, go to office hours. That is what being part of an early college high school taught me, that it is all up to you; it comes down to whether or not you want to do it. The reason I don’t feel prepared because right now, I am not officially on my own. That’s something nobody can prepare you for.”

Max’s mother is a first-grade bilingual teacher at Douglass Academy, where Max has volunteered as a robotics coach and chess teacher to the student there.

“I volunteer because I want to give back the experiences I received as a child,” he said. “In middle school, I was part of the First Lego League Robotics. I started learning chess in second grade and that was a phenomenal experience; it helped me experience the analytical side of thinking, as well as perception. I really value that.”


Travis requires all of its seniors to have 100 hours of community service upon graduation. Max has more than three times the required amount, with 325 hours. 

“Seeing that light turn in their eyes is my favorite thing about volunteering,” he said. “Once you see that thought click in their head, that is the best part.”

Max says he is looking forward to his college experience and to meeting the people who have already done what he is trying to do.

“I can’t wait to meet people who share that drive, that inspiration for learning,” he said. “And the professors - I am looking forward to being able to have the experience of learning from those who have done so much.”

Class Officers 
Andrew Gavin Olguin - President

Felisha Bocanegra - Vice President

Adamaris Trevino- Secretary

Nicolas Andres Rios - Treasurer

Jesus Alonso Villasana - Historian

Deandra Flores - Student Engagement

Abcde Marie Espinoza - Parliamentarian

Gloria Irma Gorena Garcia - Chief of Staff

School Colors 
Navy blue and white

School Mascot
Panther

Class Motto
A Class with a Vision

Class Song
The Night We Met - Lord Huron featuring Phoebe Bridgers  

Travis Early College High School
Class of 2020

#1 Maximo Trevino Estrada, Rice University
#2 Rozlynn Macbeth Olivas, University of the Incarnate Word
#3 Nicolas Andres Rios, Johns Hopkins University
#4 Cuauhtemoc Rodriguez, University of Texas at San Antonio
#5 Laysha Olimpia Garcia, University of Texas at Austin
#6 Ana Damaris Neaves, Middlebury College
#7 Natalie Magallanes, University of North Texas
#8 Ashley Virginia Pennix, Texas Tech University
#9 Yesenia Maria Montalvo-Lopez, St. Mary’s Univeristy
#10 Yasmin Banuelos, Texas Tech University

Travis Early College High School
Class of 2020

Janai Mychelle Adams
Lorie A. Alfaro
Daisy Almanza
Sebastian  Alvarado
Emily Jayne Apolinar
Leonela Nicole Aybar
Yasmin Banuelos
Taina Magdalena Barrera
Felisha M Bocanegra
Brianna Rachelle Briseno
David Anthony Cajchun
Vanessa Lorraine Camacho
Joshua-Jovani Lemus Campacos
Madia Lynn Campos
Jeremiah Carmona
Deana Del-Mari Castillo
Valerie Cepeda
Antonio Edwardo Charo
Juan Julian Cruz
Israel De Leon
Myrka Marilyn De Leon
Christopher Del Rio
Jose Luis Diaz
Marco Theodore Escamilla
Ariel Rose Jolie Escobedo
Abcde Marie Espinoza
Maximo Trevino Estrada
Deandra Flores
Francisco Eduardo Flores Hernandez
Kenny Osmin Flores-Vasquez
Stephen Anthony Galan
Alexandra Garay Lopez
Emily Ann Garcia
Laysha Olimpia Garcia
Diana Gonzalez
Gloria Irma Gorena Garcia
Cayla Celeste Hernandez
Clarissma Daniella Hernandez
Gabriel Hernandez
Lauren A. Hernandez
Samantha Pauline Hernandez
Jake Marshall Huerta
Filiberto Ibarra
Alfonso Martin Lopez
Katherine Elizabeth Lopez
Kenyon Rhys Luce
Yordi Lugo
Natalie Magallanes
Sebastian Ray Martinez
Aracelly April Mata
Jenna Lea Mendoza
Andrea Miller
Samantha Alexandra Moncivais
Yesenia Maria Montalvo-Lopez
Ana Damaris Neaves
Sylvia Yolanda Nothstein
Andrew Gavin Olguin
Rozlynn Macbeth Olivas
Brandy Koral Ordaz
Gabriella Angelina Partida
Ashley Virginia Pennix
Cierra May Perez
Marissa Perez
Jose Juan Pina Bautista
Abcde Cecilia Pompa-Gonzalez
Gabriella Quinonez
Xiclali Quinonez
Mauricio Ramirez
Alma Leticia Renderos
Eli De Jesus Renderos
Nicolas Andres Rios
Lynda Alexandra Rodriguez Vasquez
Cuauhtemoc Rodriguez
Victoria Rodriguez
Heaven Lee Rueda
Luis Angel Salas
Holanda Saldivar
Gabriela Maria Sanchez
Michael Joseph Sanchez
Yadira A. Silva
Gabrielle Ariana Solis
Jose Sebastian Solis
Nicolas Roberto Solis
Ana Karen Suarez
Luis Antonio Torres
Ryan David Torres
Aubrey Angelica Tovar
Adamaris Trevino
Nicole Alexis Valadez
Roberto Carlos Vallejos-Molina
Laura Annabell Vazquez
Jesus Alonso Villasana