Photo by Michael J. GallegosTribune

Tribune

Eleven-year-old Lupita Cruz, a sixth-grader at Ernie Pyle Middle School, was one of 57 students enrolled in counselor Don Mondragon's clown class last semester. Mondragon, 63, has been teaching clowning at the school for 35 years. His students perform for other children and community groups. But it's not just about having fun, Mondragon said. The class has taught students to speak publicly and gain self-confidence, he said. "They don't feel different when they are in clown class," Mondragon said.

Photo by Michael J. GallegosTribune

Tribune

Four-year-old Alejandro Miranda rushes toward the mirror with a clown mask as his mother, Alyssa Sanchez-Miranda, talks with Don Mondragon, a counselor and clown class teacher at Ernie Pyle Middle School. Sanchez-Miranda, a first-year teacher at Ernie Pyle, and her son like to visit Mondragon in his classroom. "He gives me strength and helps me keep plugging away when it gets stressful," Sanchez-Miranda said. "And I like being around the clowns."

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When Ernie Pyle Middle School counselor Don Mondragon goes to work, it's like going to the circus.

His students clown around and his office exudes the happiness of the Big Top.

And that's the way it has been for a long time. Mondragon has been teaching students the art of clowning for 35 years.

His purpose is twofold: help the community and bring self-confidence and public speaking skills to the sixth-, seventh- and eighth-grade students who take his clown classes each semester.

With brightly decorated faces, eclectic costumes and a fierce sense of confidence, Mondragon's students perform dances and various skits for everyone from kindergarteners to senior citizens.

The students call themselves the Ambassadors of Joy because they bring love and laughter to the community.

This past fall semester, 57 students were enrolled in Mondragon's classes. Mondragon expects more to join in the spring, he said.

"Everywhere I go, I'm known as the teacher of clowns or the clown teacher," he said. "I have no other credentials."

And Mondragon lives up to his name. His office is covered ceiling to floor with all things clown: bookends, statues, clocks and stuffed clowns. Even the drapes have a bright multicolored pattern.

Mondragon's class is designed to promote self-confidence. It requires students to design their own outfits, plan paint patterns for their faces, pick a name and create a persona for their clown.

"We're the only school in the nation that has this kind of program," Mondragon said.

Nicholas Candelara, 13, said he has been one of Mondragon's clowns for three years and will continue to be one even after he has graduated from middle school.

"I'll go to some events when I'm in high school," he said.

Candelara's grandmother, Nana, used to be a contract clown who performed at parties. That's part of what inspired him to join the Ambassadors of Joy, he said.

"I have two outfits," Candelara said. "One is pure orange, and one is yellow and blue. I bought one of them from Mr. Mondragon, and one of them, my Nana made before she died."

Mondragon said he has seen a lot of parental involvement in the past year.

"Some of these kids are second-generation clowns," he said. "I had their parents as clowns."

Myriam Silva, 13, calls her clown character Candelita. She said her dad sometimes likes to dress up and join in. He even built a winning float for the kids.

"Last year for the State Fair parade, we got first place," she said.

Although Mondragon's drama class is geared toward creating clowns, the program is not all fun and games. The children have to learn about public speaking, presentation, different dances and skits. They have to write a biography for their clown character.

Mondragon said the confidence his students exude amazes him.

"When they come in they're very shy," he said. "So I have to build their confidence and teach them how to dance. There's more to it than hiding behind a mask."

Since Mondragon's class is the only one of its kind in the country, he has had to invent the curriculum for it and "build from the bottom up," he said. He has even gone to a few clown conventions to enhance his skills.

"I've gotten a request from Las Cruces to go start a clown program," he said. "They've called me from Oklahoma, Oregon and Colorado."

But the joy and high jinks might be contingent upon the continuation of Mondragon's employment status.

At 63, Mondragon said he knows he is close to retirement.

"I had a stroke in July, so I was lucky to make it back," he said. "They say that humor helps your sickness, so I think all my little clowns helped me."

Mondragon said it worries him that there won't be anyone to take over his class once he retires.

"It's got to happen sooner or later," he said. "I guess I've been waiting for my heart to tell me to leave, but it hasn't."