From South Texas to Cambridge, Josh Cortez Carries His Story Forward

Disclaimer: This article does not represent endorsement or political support. Harvard Kennedy School does not endorse or support candidates running for political office.

Josh Cortez graduated from the Harvard Kennedy School as a recipient of the Roy and Lila Ash Scholarship in Democracy in May 2025. But his journey to the Kennedy School began hundreds of miles away, and hundreds of years ago, in the far reaches of the Spanish Empire, an area that became known as Texas.

“My early ancestors who arrived in what we know as Texas were Spanish royal land grantees. In the 1700s, Don Jose Antonio Escobar, a Spanish citizen, had a son, Don Jose Maria Escobar, who traveled to South Texas to their land grant, where he and his descendants settled and ranched on the banks of the Rio Grande in Starr County, Texas. That piece of land is still held by family members to this day,” Cortez explains.

Raised as a rancher just like generations before him, Cortez’s early life working on the ranch in the summers was very different from his time in Cambridge. As a child, he spent his summers ranching and cattle-breeding, which shaped his identity as a descendent of a long line of ranchers and a proud Tejano.

“Tejanos” are a subset of Hispanics descended from the original Spanish and Mexican settlers of Texas. These families arrived long before Texas became part of the United States, and they supported and fought in all the wars since the American Revolution. Many hold a deep affinity as Texans and Americans. The Spanish word “Tejano” means “Texan,” explains Cortez.

“Many Tejanos brought with them the ranching and cattle-raising practices from Spain, introducing cattle, horses, farming and ranching systems to the region,” he continues. “Those cattle workers were originally called ‘vaqueros,’ and their Spanish-based cattle herding and breeding practices influenced Texan and American modern cowboy and ranch culture.”

As someone that proudly identifies at Tejano, Cortez wants others to know the history of his lineage.

Bringing Tejano to Harvard

Cortez traces his heritage back to 1779, when Spain joined the American Revolution as an ally to George Washington. “…the Spanish governor of the region sent supplies to General Washington. [He] also called upon the haciendas (established households) along the river, and these ranching families provided a collective herd of over a 1,000 head of cattle to aid in the American War of Independence,” he explains.

“Tejanos have served in every American conflict since. My grandfather was in World War II in the Pacific theater; there were many South Texas Hispanics that served. Tejanos are a subset of Latinos who see themselves as uniquely Texan and American and are very proud of it.”

That Tejano tie to his country, and the hardworking mentality his parents instilled in him, was not only personal but professional. “My father was in the military, and I grew up all over the United States. But a few times a year, especially the spring and summer, we would come back to Texas, and I always wanted to go out with my grandparents to look at their herd of Limousin cattle.”

Cortez himself is a blend of his parent’s two worlds, combining his father’s military experience and his mother’s role as a lifelong educator. “She was a teacher to underprivileged students, with a special place in her heart for first-generation learners and early childhood education ESL students. She eventually went on to become a college professor. My father was in the United States Air Force and continued to work for the Department of Defense after active duty. They are both very active in their church and taught special education Sunday School class there. To say that education and its impact on the human trajectory was exemplified throughout my life would be an understatement.”

While education was Cortez’s top priority, his workload grew quickly, driven by a desire to support his family. “I would be put to work driving T-posts and clearing mesquite. The older I got, the more I realized how much of a heritage and lifestyle this was for my grandparents; they had a tough streak in them, a thread you will find in many descendants of Texas’ older families. They have grit. It is in their blood, a connection to the land. They aren’t afraid of hard work.”

And neither was he. That same work ethic he had since he was a kid wandering among the cattle is what got him to Harvard. But of course, he brought some Texas along with him. He even threw a Texas Independence Day celebration at the school.

“Texans will say we celebrate two Independence Days: July 4 and March 2. And since the opportunity arose, we took it. On a freezing March night we played Texas country, wore our boots and wranglers, [and ate] our weight in fajitas and loaded chips and queso.”

Cortez says he was able to attend Harvard because he was offered a tuition scholarship by the Ash Center. 

“I was offered a fellowship for which I am deeply grateful. I had been working on the Hill in U.S. Congress in the Texas delegation, and public policy exposure, along with the inner workings of our nation’s government, had become second nature to me. Heading to the Kennedy School after a stint in D.C. seemed like a natural progression. I felt strongly that the timing was ideal due to what I sensed was about to be a shift in the American political climate. I wanted to be prepared for the future.”

Realizing His Purpose

Cortez’s beginnings at Harvard coincided with two deeply personal experiences that allowed him to realize his purpose.

“After graduating from Baylor, I was in a high-speed church bus crash. We rolled across a highway in traffic and, miraculously, every person survived. This taught me that I still had a purpose for which to live, and I had better get it right.”

“I [also] very unexpectedly lost a close friend to suicide a few years go. This taught me a level of empathy towards people’s daily struggles that has made me more understanding.” These personal tragedies, combined with his work experiences at that time, greatly shaped who he is today.

Working as a professor and even as an Amazon employee during the rollout of their Whole Foods partnership taught him valuable life lessons thanks to his students and coworkers, he says. After teaching, he went on to become a senior advisor and deputy chief of staff for Congress.

“To be able to work daily for my people from South Texas was one of the great honors of my life to date,” shares Cortez. “I firmly believe in using the power of elected office to improve the lives of the citizens back home; that is what elected officials are there for. We can’t fix everything, but when we can help, it’s our duty to do so.”

Following in his mother’s footsteps, Cortez was also a professor at the University of North Texas before transitioning to public service on Capitol Hill and later enrolling at the Kennedy School.

“The opportunity arose to teach graduate and undergraduate students at an HSI (Hispanic Serving Institution) back in Texas before going to work in Washington, D.C.. This experience was one of the most gratifying jobs I have had to date. I had many students who were first-generation college students,” says Cortez. “I had students who were working to make ends meet while studying. We sometimes had to come up with some creative ways to meet the set standards and expectations of the class, but we did it. I was consistently inspired by their drive.”

Words Matter

Cortez’s experiences ultimately led him to Harvard, a time that was full of many surprises and blessings. He kept himself very busy and remained committed to getting the most out of his experience.

Over the years, Cortez was a teaching assistant for a prominent management class and a research assistant in the Bloomberg Center for Cities. He was also a research assistant in the Institute of Politics. Additionally, he was involved in a myriad of extracurricular activities. He was a CRU/Athletes in Action leader for a group of first-years on the Harvard Track and Field Team. “Walking through life with these guys was a high honor,” he says.

Cortez also served on the organizing committee for the Harvard Business School and MIT Sloan Technology and National Security Conference, where he led efforts to host the four members of Congress who spoke at the event. Beyond academics, he was on the rowing team and involved in Christian Fellowship, Conservative Club, LASO (Latino Student Organization) at Harvard Business School, Aerospace and Defense Club, AI Club, and Harvard Kennedy School Republicans.

Leadership opportunities came in many forms. In the fall, he mobilized classmates to campaign in Pennsylvania for Trump’s 2024 presidential run. He also joined several AI study groups through the Belfer Center and even had his work published.

Cortez was determined to get the most out of his education, taking classes at Harvard Business School and MIT while enrolled at the Kennedy School. This determination was shaped, in part, by the power of words, especially the doubts of a childhood teacher.

As a child, a teacher told his parents he likely wouldn’t make it out of high school. That statement stayed with him and has continued to shape the rest of his life.

“I was a very active child who had a hard time sitting still in class. Unsurprisingly, I had a hard time focusing and paying attention. As an educator, my mother refused to believe that I was destined for failure. She made me buckle down and worked with teachers and tutors to get me to where I am today,” says Cortez.

“’It takes a village’ is an understatement, and I owe any of the successes of this endeavor at Harvard to my parents and to the legion of teachers, tutors, and coaches that took the extra time on a little boy who needed a little patience or an alternative learning method. It was these dedicated people who have fueled my passion for public service and education especially in the realm of first-generation students.”

Juntos Nos Levantamos

From a cattle rancher in Texas to a student at Harvard, Cortez is still that same person. And now, that person is heading back to where it all started—running for Congress in his home district in South Texas.

“I do deeply care about the region where our family has lived for centuries, and I believe it has a lot of natural resources and workforce talent, giving it a very bright future. With my experience and knowledge of the region, I know that I could bring an informed perspective and be able to help build on the good momentum in South Texas,” he emphasizes. “The district has had big tech growth as of late, with increasing job opportunities. [It] is full of many working-class families, and I intend to be their advocate in Congress. I look forward to seeing where we can go and what we can become,” he explains.

“I believe that incentives for small business ownership, higher educational and trade school opportunities for our young people, [and] pushing national companies that move to the region to hire locally first will increase the already upward trajectory of South Texans. The cost of living will need to continue to come down [and we need to provide] access to affordable healthcare, especially in rural areas. These are a few of the good ideas that I have that I am looking forward to sharing with the voters.”

“In doing so ‘juntos nos levantamos’—together we will rise.”

As people get older, they carry their life experiences with them. For Cortez, that includes his time at Harvard and the Ash Center. Those insights will guide him as he campaigns for Congress.

“I will say that my Harvard experience was greatly benefited by the Ash Center. At the beginning … I pledged to be a good steward of their investment. One might think that my background would be ‘going against the grain’ at Harvard, but the Ash Center let me explore different worldviews and really lean into my conservative roots. I viewed this opportunity as one that would not be wasted, and I have become a better man for it. The whole experience was truly a gift, and it is a gift I don’t intend to take lightly.”