Comunidad Releases Annual Newsletter

Comunidad

Los Rios Community College District Latinx/Chicanx Professional Affinity Group Annual Newsletter 2020-2021

La Historia

There has been a long history in the Los Rios Community College District of Latinx/Chicanx employees who have organized a support system for new and continuing professionals in the district. A sense of familia is critical for Latinx/Chicanx individuals to thrive in the large and complex institution of education, for professionals as much as students.  Below is a brief history of the various versions of this support system that has established a foundation for Comunidad today.  We have a current 2020-2021 roster of 729 members.

• Early 2000’s: Chicano/Latino Faculty and Staff Association (CLFSA) formed at Sacramento City College
• 2013: District-wide Comunidad first met during UC Davis HSI (Hispanic Serving Institution) Summit 

Mission and Vision

Comunidad Leadership 2020-2021

Honoring and Remembering Ruben Ruiz, Sacramento City College

This edition is dedicated to Comunidad member Ruben Ruiz, who passed away on January 22, 2021.  He worked at Sacramento City College since 1993, most recently as a financial aid officer.  Students saw Ruben as someone they could rely on for timely and thorough assistance.  He would go above and beyond to ensure that students were supported and had the right information to succeed. Ruben is missed dearly by his colleagues at SCC and by the members of Los Rios Comunidad.

Comunidad News

Summer Comunidad Retreat August 14, 2020

To kick off this year of education during a global pandemic, we held our first-ever virtual Comunidad retreat. This one-day event included sessions on networking, a “Comadres, Compadres, No Binaria” session, digital inclusion, and Anti-Blackness in the Latinx Community.

Puente

American River College

ARC Puentistas are starting to announce their college admissions news, which include Sac State, UC Davis, Berkeley, and many more! The ARC Puente celebration for students will take place on Wednesday, Cinco de Mayo. Some students from Honors College Composition and Literature course, and TA Claudia Guerrero, joined English Coordinator Cathy Arellano to virtually attend the National Association of Chicana and Chicano Studies conference. Counselor Carmelita Palomares and SPA Katia Morales-Becerra kept the mentee-mentor mixers lots of fun with their virtual games, such as “Lotería Treasure Hunt” and “Among Us.” In addition to teaching ENGWR 300 and ENGWR 94 in the Fall and ENGWR 301 in the Spring, English Professor Melissa Diaz added her special pizazz to the online events. Mentor Griselda Rodriguez with Counseling/Coordinator Dr. Rick Ramírez facilitated “Our Cultural Strengths and Assets: Reframing Deficit Thinking” workshop and Mentor Stephanie Gomez led the “Self Care Is for Everyone” workshop. This semester, in Honors ENGWR 481, Mentor Claudia Guerrero has been volunteering and Nacho Fernandez of WAC has returned to work with PUENTE students. Finally, back in Fall 2020 all of the cohorts attended the statewide virtual conference and heard incisive calls for social justice from Dr. Cornel West and Las Cafeteras.

Cosumnes River College

The CRC Puente team consists of Aselia Valadez Melo as Puente Coordinator, Chris Torres as HCD Professor, Priscilla Hansen as English Professor, and Tria Vue as Puente Support Staff.  This year’s events included a Culture and Identity Presentation and Chicano Movement documentary screening Presented by Senon Valadez, PhD, Emeritus in Anthropology from Sacramento State University, and Director/Producer of Chicano Movement Oral History Project. Puente provided the Film Screening of “Singing Our Way to Freedom” and Q/A with Producer/Director Paul Espinosa. This year Puente began providing major information sessions to Puente Major-Familia’s and hosted events such as UC Davis Prep Médico: Navigating Your Path into Medicine, as well as information sessions about UC Riverside, Chico State, Department of Psychology, Sacramento State Business Administration and UC Davis Avenue E Engineering and Avenue B Biology programs. All sessions included a student panel. Puente Collaborated with CRC’s Music Department and Co-Hosted “In the Studio” with Estevan Azcona, Professor of Chicana and Chicano Studies at San Jose State University, and co-producer of the Smithsonian Folkways Recordings release, Rolas de Aztlán: Songs of the Chicano Movement. This Spring, CRC Puente selected 6 students nominated for their leadership to attend UC Berkeley Hope Program Mujeres Leadership Meeting, where students met directly with professionals in various professions; students selected were Kalian Rivera, Monserrate Rosas, Maria Del Carmen Iturriaga, Jaiden Gallegos, Ana Yesenia Murillo Rivas, Grecia Gomez. CRC Puente also began a partnership with SMUD’s Luna Program for Mentorship and Internship opportunities. 

Sacramento City College

This academic year, SCC Puente welcomed a new English Instructor, Rachel Spangler. With her guidance, we had a 100% completion rate for English Writing 300! The Puente Program at SCC was the first program to develop a remote Mentor model that was used and shared throughout the nationwide program. SCC Puente Program Student Personnel Assistant Alejandra Benites and Counselor/ Coordinator Sandra Guzman both worked together to develop these "Mentor Platicas." In collaboration with RASA Center, Sacramento City College Puente hosted many activities, including a virtual discussion with renowned author, Reyna Grande.

Los Rios Undocumented Student Resources

California AB 1645 was passed, providing funding to enhance and institutionalize undocumented student support in California community colleges. During the Fall 2020 semester, Los Rios campuses collaborated to host virtual “Undocu- Weeks of Action'', a High School Senior Undocu-College Week, and an Undocu- Leadership Conference component to the 5th Annual Keeping the Dream Alive Conference hosted by Dream Resource Center at Sacramento State. In Spring of 2021, Los Rios Undocu-Resource Programs collaborated with other northern California colleges and partnered with Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights (CHIRLA) to host the virtual “Undocu-Wisdom Workshop Series” for students, allies, and the community. 

“Honrando a Nuestros Estudiantes” virtual event, May 6, 2021

The annual Latinx/Chicanx Recognition Ceremony, Honrando a Nuestros Estudiantes (Honoring Our Students), is a Los Rios Community College district-wide event that celebrates the accomplishments of students that have earned a certificate and/or degree or are transferring to a four-year university. The committee also awards multiple scholarships to students.  For the 2021 virtual ceremony, we have an unprecedented 261 graduates and transfer students registered to participate.

Los Rios HSI Updates

A “Hispanic Serving Institution” is a federal designation that allows colleges to apply for competitive grants focusing on Latinx and low-income students. Sacramento City College’s HSI Title V grant that funded SAGE (Students in A Global Economy) is closing after fulfilling its grant goals of providing students a learning community with a global and cultural focus. This project was most recently led by Director Rosana Chavez-Hernandez, who also spearheaded the grant-writing of a new HSI Title V Project that was awarded to SCC and will focus on an early college program starting in Fall 2021.  The SCC SESI Project, “STEM Equity Success Initiative”, is funded by the HSI STEM Title III grant.  This program serves STEM students in a learning community environment, and also has a faculty Professional Learning Community. This project is led by Director Martin Ramirez.  Cosumnes River College was awarded an HSI Title V Grant that will focus on developing the “MI CASA'' Project, providing students the opportunity to enroll smoothly in college, stay in college, and reach their education completion goals on time. A big congratulations to CRC’s Gladis Sanchez, who has been hired as the new CRC HSI Grant Project Director.

American River College Professional Development Series

This inaugural series has a focus on supporting the success of Latinx/e students based on the Latinx DI Report. “Mejorando ARC para nuestras comunidades: Bridging the gap between education and liberation for Latinx/e students” launched this spring and was facilitated by Griselda Casillas and Dr. Veronica Lopez.

Mario Rodriguez, ARC, Awarded ACPA Latinx Community Advancement and Service Award

Mario Rodriguez received a meaningful award from the American College Personnel Association (ACPA), which is an international student affairs professional association. He was recognized for his long-time work advocating for the Latinx community in higher education.

Graduates

Congratulations to our Comunidad colleagues who completed a degree in 2020-2021.

Hires & Promotions

A big welcome and congratulations to our Comunidad colleagues who were hired or promoted into full-time positions in 2020-2021.

Retirements

Congratulations to our Comunidad colleagues who retired from our district in 2020-2021.

Comunidad Calendar of Activities 2020-2021 (all virtual)