When Alonzo Washington was 8 years old, he and his five siblings lived in a homeless shelter across the street from what is now university President Wallace Loh’s $7.2 million University House.

Now, about 22 years later, he’s a proud university alumnus serving as a state delegate in District 22, which includes Prince George’s County. He spoke to this university’s College Democrats group Wednesday night about the issues the state faces regarding higher education.

For Washington, who is the first person in his family to graduate from both high school and college, the problems are personal.

“I want to do some great things and make sure kids who grew up in poverty like me have access to college,” Washington said. “My experiences help me empathize with people dealing with those issues. It made me want to work harder because I don’t want to ever be in that situation again, and I don’t think anyone should ever have to be in that situation.”

When Washington, who sports dreadlocks and thick, black-framed glasses, entered the College Democrats meeting, he immediately asked about Saturday’s homecoming game against Clemson. As a student at this university, Washington walked onto the football team his freshman year and joined the Alpha Phi Alpha fraternity.

“My time here at Maryland taught me time management, how to be professional, how to get to my 8 a.m. classes on time. It was a great experience, and I love it a lot here,” Washington said. “The University of Maryland saved my life. It was a safe haven for me.”

Washington is working on a study that could lead to a bill modeled after Oregon’s Pay It Forward initiative, which allows students to attend a two- or four-year state university free of cost, in exchange for a 3 percent deduction from their post-graduation paychecks for about 25 years.

In the long term, he also wants to focus on keeping tuition rates reasonable, increasing college readiness and closing the achievement gap. He believes in education reform on a local level and encouraging collaboration between parents, teachers and principals.

As the youngest member of the House of Delegates, Washington said people often assume he’s unqualified when they first meet him. But when they hear his about his experiences, that changes.

He served as outreach coordinator for the Prince George’s County Council from 2008 to 2010 and as chief of staff and legislative aide for councilman Will Campos.

“But being the youngest comes with pluses, too,” Washington said. “I’m very energetic and ready to get things done, so you’ll be seeing a lot of legislation coming from me next year. I’m not someone who says ‘no’ easily. If someone has been [in the House of Delegates] a long time, they’ll say, ‘Oh, we’ve tried that before, and it didn’t work,’ but I’ll say ‘Let’s try again.’”

Washington said he plans on getting involved with his constituents by going out and knocking on doors.

“I want to know the issues and translate those issues into legislation — that’s what we’re here for,” he said.

For freshman Steven Palmer, hearing about Washington’s quick political ascension was inspiring.

“If you’re at the College Democrats meeting, you want to have a role in politics one day, and it was great hearing how he did it and how we can learn from him,” said Palmer, a government and politics major and the College Democrats communication director.

Club president Ben Kramer, a junior government and politics and history major, said he was extremely moved by Washington’s life story.

“I think that he typifies the American dream. His background really exemplifies the power of a good education,” Kramer said. “For him, education was a way to move out of poverty and become a member of the Maryland State House. It just shows that when you give people that opportunity, they are more than capable of making something of it.”

Washington said he hopes his talk will inspire students to volunteer or mentor young people from tough neighborhoods to help them go to college.

“I hope to leave students with the message that they have a job to do,” he said. “Here at the University of Maryland, there [are] some of the smartest people in the state. Students have to give back and pay it forward. College is a privilege, and we need to make sure others get the chance to fall in love with Maryland, too.”