By MARK MUCKENFUSS
The Press-Enterprise
California State University Chancellor Charles B. Reed told 800 people attending a Cal State San Bernardino conference on Monday that Latinos will play an increasing part in the future success of the state.
“Latinos will play such a pivotal role in keeping our nation competitive in the next few decades,” Reed said, alluding to the recent U.S. census that showed 38 percent of Californians are now Latino. He said educators need to “ensure their college graduation rates keep growing.”
Reed was addressing the second annual Latino Education and Advocacy Days conference at the university.
The conference, referred to by one of its main organizers, Enrique Murillo Jr., as “Latino Ed Palooza,” drew a slightly larger in-person crowd this year and expanded its presence online. The conference was streamed live to schools across the United States, 15 Central and South American countries and Spain. At one point, Murillo announced 2 million viewers were online.
Organizers pulled in some high-profile speakers, including seven members of the Obama administration who all appeared via video conference. They included Secretary of Education Arne Duncan and Daniel Hernandez, the intern to Arizona Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, who struggled to assist her when she was shot in January.
CULTURE, CURRICULUM
Celebrating the Latino culture, the day opened with mariachi music as participants registered. A lunchtime performance featured Aztec dancers with feathered headdresses. Conference topics ranged from strengthening science, technology, engineering and math programs to the issue of recent legislation in Arizona that some see as a cultural assault on Latinos.
Duncan told the gathering that more educators of color are needed nationwide. He also said he and President Barack Obama believe the No Child Left Behind initiative is broken and they hope to have it fixed by the start of a new school year this fall.
“The current law is too punitive,” Duncan said. “The only success (for schools) is not being labeled a failure.”
He also said standardized testing required by the law “led to a dumbing down of standards.”
The biggest challenge for Latino educators, he said, is keeping students in school. Figures show that the Latino high school dropout rate of 21 percent is the highest among any ethnic group. Of those who graduate, only 1 in 3 have met the requirements to attend a four-year college.
PLANS CHANGE
Duncan and other administration officials were originally scheduled to attend the conference, but when Obama scheduled a town hall meeting on education in Washington, D.C., for Monday, they had to stay in the capital and address the gathering remotely.
Jay Fiene, Cal State San Bernardino’s interim dean of education, said much of the attention from leaders in Washington was due to Juan Sepulveda, the director of the White House Initiative on Educational Excellence.
“Last year we had Juan Sepulveda come out, and he was instrumental in opening doors,” Fiene said.
While the conference focused on Latino issues, Fiene said the potential scope is more widespread.
“If we can get education right for our Latino youth, we get it right for our Anglo youth and our African-American youth,” he said. “The issues are the same.”
The university’s president, Albert Karnig, said the school has a strong interest in addressing Latino issues.
“Sixty percent of our entering freshman class this past fall was Latino,” Karnig said. The school has the third-highest graduation rate of Latinos among Cal State schools and last year awarded more bachelor’s degrees in math to Latinos than any college in the country.
School funding was discussed in nearly every presentation. Michelle Siqueiros, executive director of the Campaign for College Opportunity, said she is worried about what reduced investment for education will mean in the long run.
“We should be outraged that we are on track to have a generation of young people that are less educated than we are,” Siqueiros said. “I think that’s very disturbing.”
Attendee Kimberly Billingsley works to help minority students at Rialto High School. She said her interest in the conference is “more than just professional.”
“This is about my personal life,” she said. “My daughter is Hispanic and black. I feel for her to grow and have a great future, I have to work on this right now.”
Reach Mark Muckenfuss at 951-368-9595 or mmuckenfuss@PE .com
See story @ http://www.pe.com/localnews/sbcounty/stories/PE_News_Local_D_lead29.24d9f10.html
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