Ryan Flaco Rising has overcome so many barriers in his journey being incarcerated as a youth and as an adult, addiction to hardcore drugs, documented as a gang member and most of all being a Formerly Incarcerated Student in a university setting that was not designed for his presence. None of these obstacles deterred him from receiving his associates degree in behavioral science with a specialization in counseling from San Diego City College and a bachelor's degree in sociology with a minor in education from the University of California Santa Barbara. Now, Ryan Flaco Rising is a PhD candidate at the University of California Irvine in Criminology, Law and Society. Ryan Flaco Rising is proud of creating pathways for formerly incarcerated gang involved students into higher education. His story is proof that when our communities invest in formerly incarcerated gang involved individuals and give them opportunities and resources to create knowledge that those closest to the issues are closest to the solutions.