The CSU has joined Es El Momento (The Moment Is Now), a national multimedia campaign aimed at advancing the U.S. college graduation goal and increasing high school completion and college readiness among Latinos.
“What the Latino community needs is a set of tangible solutions that mentor Latino youth, educate parents about the nuts and bolts of getting to college, financial aid process and making the most of college,” said CSUSB assistant professor Louie F. Rodriguez.
The multi-year campaign was launched on Feb. 23 at the National Press Club in Washington D.C. and is being led by Univision Communications and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.
“We need to develop a situation where it is normal and expected that Latino youth will go to college, just like we see in middle-class communities," Rodriguez said.
“Increasing college readiness among Latinos is critical to meeting President Obama’s education goal of making the United States the leading nation in college degree holders by 2020,” said CSU Chancellor Charles B. Reed. “CSU is committed to supporting this national effort by maintaining several ongoing initiatives to overcome students’ college barriers.”
The three-year effort will focus on creating a college-going culture among U.S. Latinos and setting expectations for high school completion and college readiness.
In this program parents will learn about the structure of California’s educational system, are trained to successfully establish relationships with school principals and teachers, and get tips on how to establish a home environment that is conductive to learning.
According to The Pew Hispanic Center, nearly 90 percent of Latino young adults ages 16 to 25 say that a college education is important for success in life, yet only about half that number, 48 percent, says that they themselves plan to get a college degree.
"The biggest reason for the gap between the high value Latinos place on education and their more modest aspirations to finish college appears to come from financial pressure to support a family,” said Pew Hispanic Center associate director Mark Hugo Lopez.
“Many Latino families are working-class and in today’s economy, putting food on the table, paying for health insurance, and putting gas in the car takes precedence over studying,” said Rodriguez.
“This campaign is a great symbolic effort to use the media to reach the youngest and fastest growing population in this country, Latinos.”
One successful initiative is a partnership with the Parent Institute for Quality Education (PIQE), offering a 9-week parent training program to Latino families with children in elementary and middle schools near CSU campuses.
Other partners in the national campaign include the U.S. Department of Education, state educational organizations, NASA, ASPIRA, NCLR, LULAC, the Hispanic Scholarship Fund, College Board, other educational nonprofit organizations, and civic and community leaders throughout the country.
Visit their website at www.eselmomento.com
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