As this year’s student voice, Oliver Dorantes Rodriguez sets engaging tone at Sonoma Valley High School

Making weekly announcements over the intercom to Sonoma Valley High School classes might appear to be a routine, somewhat humdrum task, but Oliver Dorantes Rodriguez has turned it into an engaging activity enjoyed by students, faculty and staff.

“His enthusiasm, lightheartedness, humor and excitement to lead his school all shine through,” Principal Molly Kiss said. “We are so proud of Oliver — he is really creating a model for what we can hope for in our student voice position. He brings everybody in the school together.”

As the student voice — a position similar to student body president — Dorantes Rodriguez, a senior, also is the student representative at the Sonoma Valley Unified School District Board of Trustees meetings and works with SVHS administrators, as well as student clubs and organizations.

“As a leader, Oliver keeps in minds his peers’ needs and interests in all of his planning, advocacy and decisions,” Kiss said. “Oliver also has benefited the SVHS community in terms of his collaboration. He is great at bringing together student interests and working with the administration so that we can accomplish great things together through a shared vision.”

Dorantes Rodriguez was selected for the role of the 2022-23 student voice in the SVHS Associated Student Body elections, and he has enjoyed serving in the role.

“I love it, with our school having lots of Hispanic students,” he said. “I was given the chance to represent each one of them. My biggest accomplishment in this role, I would have to say, is how well and organized every event went for Homecoming. It was a stressful week for everyone, but I tried my best to stay on top of everything.”

Dorantes Rodriguez has also immersed himself in other campus activity groups. He is treasurer of La Sociedad Honoraria Hispanica, an honor society similar to the California Scholarship Federation but focused more on Hispanic individuals.

“We do community service and find lots of ways to help the community,” Dorantes Rodriguez said. “As the treasurer, I keep track of all the money that comes in and out of our account so that later in the school year, we can order our sashes for graduation and other fun stuff.”

He also has been on the school’s soccer team every year, except as a sophomore when play was suspended due to the pandemic.

“We did well all three years, but haven’t won a title,” said Dorantes Rodriguez, this year’s team captain. “Hopefully, that will change this season, as our team looks really dedicated and everyone is excited.”

Born and raised in Sonoma, he attended Flowery Elementary School and Adele Harrison Middle School.

He attributed much of his success to his family. His father, Francisco Dorantes, has worked for Spiffy’s Building Maintenance in Sonoma for more than 20 years and his mother, Lucia Rodriguez, has worked at The Inn at Sonoma for more than 14 years. His brother, Joel Dorantes, is a graduate of SVHS and now works as a mechanic at Kovacs Motors in Sonoma.

“My family pushes me to keep going further and further,” Dorantes Rodriguez said. “They are also there for me when I need help in any way. I know I can trust them at any point in my life.”

After graduation from SVHS, he plans to study fire science and become a firefighter.

“I was inspired by the fires that happened in 2017,” he said. “My family and I were evacuated and affected in many ways. I [decided to enroll in] an explorer program at the Kenwood fire station, where I learned lots about firefighting. It kept making me more and more interested in it. I love helping people and I plan to continue doing so in the future.”

He is confident the leadership skills he has developed will come in handy in his career.

“I have learned what it takes to be a leader,” Dorantes Rodriguez said. “Some people like to call themselves a leader, but don’t understand what it means. I have learned a lot of skills, such as time management and talking in front of a big crowd. I know these will benefit me in the future, either in college or in my career.”

When he’s not immersed in his school activities, Dorantes Rodriguez can often be seen driving around town in a Grabber Blue 2017 Mustang.

“I love cars, especially loud cars,” he said. “The Mustang is probably the brightest car in Sonoma. I love American muscle cars and how they sound.”

Reach the reporter, Dan Johnson, at daniel.johnson@sonomanews.com.