Every Day is Magic: Ada Limón
In her 2015 collection, Bright Dead Things, a National Book Award finalist for poetry, Ada Limón writes of moving to Kentucky: “Confession: I did not want to live here.” It’s perhaps not a surprising sentiment coming from a coastally oriented person who was raised in Northern California, attended college in Seattle, and then spent over a decade in New York City.
But Limón and her husband, Lucas, have been in Lexington for seven years now and the effects of settling into this place are noticeable in her new book, The Carrying (Milkweed, Aug.). It’s a phenomenally lively and attentive collection replete with the trappings of living a little closer to nature. While Bright Dead Things is marked by a preponderance of light, such as images of fireflies and neon signs, The Carrying features numerous appearances by various trees, birds, and beetles. Limón also demonstrates a greater willingness to be explicit in naming colors, particularly green. “It’s crazy green, the whole book,” she says. “Lexington is the greenest place I’ve ever lived.” Similarly, where in Bright Dead Things, Limón tells a lot of stories and anecdotes, in The Carrying she is very present in her thoughts and experiences.
As it turns out, these shifts in focus have another, altogether unexpected source. While putting Bright Dead Things together, Limón was diagnosed with chronic vestibular neuronitis, which can cause bouts of vertigo. “If I’m really having vertigo, it’s pretty intense and I really have to focus,”
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Youth training program signs up more than half a million
“Just four months after its implementation, a federal youth training and scholarship program has already signed up over half a million beneficiaries, more than half-way to its goal of reaching one million by the end of the year.
Labor and Social Welfare Secretary Luisa María Alcalde said today that the “Young People Building the Future” program has signed up 501,559 youths, 378,650 of whom are now receiving a monthly scholarship of 3,600 pesos (US $190).
Alcalde said 75,507 businesses..”
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College Material
“— The Early Academic Outreach Program (EAOP) at UC Santa Barbara will hold a series of UC Success Night events April 10 through May 3 to celebrate the academic success of high school seniors from the university’s EAOP partnership schools who have been admitted to the UC system.
UC-admitted seniors and their families from high schools in Santa Barbara, Ventura and Kern counties are invited to attend their respective school’s event.
The program includes a presentation of awards and of State Proclamations from local Senate and Assembly members in recognition of students’ academic achievement, and student keynote speeches will be delivered in both English and Spanish. Attendees also will have the opportunity to meet UC Santa Barbara faculty and staff members, administrators, alumni and undergraduate students, as well as network with other students and families from their hometown who may be attending the same universities in the fall.
“‘Where Preparation Meets Opportunity’ — that’s our slogan,” said Britt Ortiz, EAOP director. “UC Success Night represents every aspect of our students’ preparation for meeting opportunity when it knocks. We celebrate the success of so many first-generation students and their families for being admitted to the UC system, one of the most competitive public institutions in the country. Our EAOP students put in the time, they did the work, they made the sacrifices and we were able to help them make their educational dreams come true.”
The EAOP college site coordinators and academic services team have, according to Ortiz, “poured their hearts and souls” into helping the 2019 senior class. “They started in the summer before their senior year with the College Readiness Academy, then college applications, personal inquiry questions for the UC system, scholarship letters, FAFSA-CADA applications, extending hours for advisement or holding test preparation workshops on the weekend,” he said. “Most of our EAOP staff are first-generation college grads themselves, so helping students in our program is their passion.”
The first of seven UC Success Night events will honor Carpinteria High School students Wednesday, April 10, at 6 p.m. in the school cafeteria, 4810 Foothill Rd. The Santa Paula High School event will follow Thursday, April 11 at 6 p.m. in the school cafeteria, 404 N. 6th St.
The UC Success Night for Santa Maria Joint Union High School District will take place at 6 p.m. Monday, April 15, in Veterans Memorial Hall, 313 W. Tunnell St. Fillmore High School students will be recognized at 6 p.m. Wednesday, April 17, in that school’s cafeteria, 555 Central Ave. Channel Islands and Hueneme high school students and their families are invited to attend an event at 6 p.m. Thursday, April 25, at the Oxnard Performing Arts…”
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EDI office lacks inclusivity necessary to promote diversity throughout UCLA
“In the wake of rich, white kids being able to buy their way into college and faculty growing increasingly concerned about the lack of diversity in their leadership, it’s easy to turn to UCLA’s designated solution-maker: the Office of Equity, Diversity and Inclusion.
But cut through the sleek website, carefully crafted copy- and buzzword- filled seminars, and it’s clear the office is mainly just that – and a couple of smart administrators.
It comes down to inclusion, something the EDI office ironically needs to work on.
The office is run by Jerry Kang, the vice chancellor for EDI, and a handful of other administrators. While these individuals have various advisory councils, an office tasked with matters of diversity and inclusion should certainly have a more reflectively diverse leadership team…”
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Student captures candid moments through creative videography for Shawn Mendes tour
“Connor Brashier made arrangements to take one of his final exams while in Germany.
The second-year psychology student will miss finals week because he is currently shooting videos for Shawn Mendes’ self-titled world tour, which kicked off March 7 in Amsterdam. His role involves editing and sharing clips with Mendes for the singer’s social media accounts. Brashier got his start in lifestyle videography working with brands like PacSun and Pura Vida Bracelets, but has taken to filming DJs and musicians like Madison Beer in recent years. Filming on tour brings creative challenges with each consecutive show, he said, but it ultimately allows him to better incorporate music into videos.
“Having a video team on the road has been so important to giving my fans constant content and helps me to connect with them,” Mendes said in an email statement. “(Brashier) has an amazing way of capturing really special and intimate moments at shows and backstage, and has just an incredible energy.”
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Students now work longer hours than before to afford college, study finds
“UCLA students said they need to work long hours to cover high costs of living and other school-related expenses.
A study conducted in September by HSBC, a banking and financial services company, found students in the United States are spending more time working paid jobs than studying or going to class.
The survey also found the U.S. has the largest funding gap between parents and students across the surveyed countries, with college students spending six times more money than their parents on their education over the course of their college years.
The study found parents have had to reduce spending and more students have had to work paid jobs to afford college.
Paul Mullins, the regional head of international banking at HSBC, said in an email statement that researchers found 85 percent of current U.S. college students work paid jobs, with 37 percent of students looking..”
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Standardized tests pose issues but inequalities go deeper, say students, faculty
“Eliminating standardized testing from the college admissions process may not make the process more fair for students from historically underrepresented socioeconomic classes, UCLA students and faculty said.
Beyond the Score, a student organization, held a town hall Feb. 20 to discuss the drawbacks of using standardized testing in college admissions. Members of the organization are campaigning to remove standardized testing as an admissions factor because they believe it selects against certain groups of applicants based on their socioeconomic status.
Patricia Gandara, a professor in the UCLA Graduate School of Education & Information Studies and co-director of The Civil Rights Project, said standardized test scores are strongly and positively correlated with the test-takers’ socioeconomic status.
“If you come from a high-income family, you have a much greater chance of scoring well on these than you do if you come from a low-income family,” Gandara said. “And that is socially unjust.”..”
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UCLA diversity report shows general trend toward increased representation in TV
“Women and people of color continue to be left out of Hollywood, but the 2019 Hollywood Diversity Report details the proportional representation that is slowly and steadily underway.
Released Feb. 21 by UCLA’s Institute for Research on Labor and Employment, the report is the sixth in an annual series and examines gender and racial diversity in the film and television industries. Zeroing in on 1,316 television shows from the 2016 to 2017 season and 2017’s top 200 theatrical films, the report shows an increase in gender and racial diversity in categories such as directors and digital scripted show leads.
“We think that information has begun to slowly sink in in Hollywood, and that’s one of the reasons we think we’re starting to see more diversity in Hollywood,” said Darnell Hunt, dean of social sciences and an author of the report. “Even though we have a long way to go, at least things seem to be moving in the right direction, particularly in television.”
[RELATED: Researchers study underrepresentation in film, TV]…”
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Designs on the Future
“It would be hard to find someone more prepared for a job than Silvia Perea. An architect by training — she earned a Ph.D. from the Polytechnic University of Madrid — she has spent the past 11 years as a curator of exhibitions around the world. Before that she was a university professor and edited architectural magazines. Today she is the new curator of UC Santa Barbara’s Art, Design & Architecture Museum, which holds the largest collection of architectural drawings in North America…”
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Latino homeless population found to be at disadvantage in outreach programs
“A UCLA researcher found Latino homeless individuals in Los Angeles are less likely to receive support due to cultural and language barriers.
Melissa Chinchilla, a Latino policy and politics initiative researcher, published a study on the Latino homeless population in LA on Feb. 12 using 2017 data provided by the LA Homeless Services Authority and interviews she conducted with researchers and providers of homeless services and resources. Latino people make up 35 percent of LA County’s homeless population, according to LAHSA data.
Chinchilla said she found Latinos are undercounted in the LAHSA homeless count because they are more likely to live in nontraditional homeless spaces, such as converted garages and households with multiple unrelated families, and less likely than other racial groups to use public services. She added that little research has been done on Latino homelessness…”
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‘The Future is Here’
“…In the late 1960s, so few other Latinos attended his college, Cástulo de la Rocha could find and personally call them all in a matter of days. And as a student activist in a growing Chicano Movement, he did just that.
“There was an ongoing debate at the time whether there were 20 or 40 or 50 Latinos here at that time,” recalled de la Rocha, then a student at UC Santa Barbara. “So I went to all the students one by one, by last name — Gómez, González, Martínez — all of them. Our number was small. Today the university is very different. Of more than 20,000 students on campus close to 30 percent are Latino, which is extraordinary.”
UC Santa Barbara now is one of two Hispanic-Serving Institutions in the prestigious Association of American Universities, a designation stipulating that Hispanic students comprise at least 25 percent of total enrollment.
And de la Rocha, alongside other passionate, vocal students, staff and faculty…”
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Seizing Opportunity
“…Carlos Marquez, the new manager of the Charles T. Munger Physics Residence, reflects on a long and fruitful career on campus…”
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California’s high cut score leads to disproportionately low pass rate on bar exam
“…Hundreds of law students fail the bar exam in California, but would pass with the same score elsewhere due to varying standards between states.
California has the second-highest cut score, or minimum score required to pass the exam. California students must score a 1440 out of 2000 to pass, compared to the national average of 1350.
The state also has the second-lowest pass rate for the bar in the nation, after the District of Columbia. Less than half of students taking the California bar exam passed in 2018, the lowest pass rate since 1951.
Jennifer Mnookin, dean of the UCLA School of Law, said she thinks California would be better off if it lowered its cut score…”
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Students, faculty react to attempt to promote diversity to UCLA’s hiring process
“…UCLA administrators implemented changes to the hiring process in hopes of fostering greater diversity within the faculty.
All prospective UCLA faculty were required to complete Equity, Diversity and Inclusion statements beginning the 2018-2019 academic year. An EDI Statement is a statement in which a candidate describes their past, present and future contributions to equity, diversity and inclusion, according to the EDI office.
Scott Waugh, UCLA executive vice chancellor and provost, said he implemented the policy to gather information about equity, diversity and inclusion more consistently by using an institutional approach. Prior to this mandate, only certain departments required an EDI Statement, while others made it optional.
The EDI office described the new mandate in an email statement as a tool that better positions UCLA to live up to its ideals, but acknowledged the measure offers only a modest attempt at resolving the campus’ lack of faculty diversity…”
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A Journey of Service
“…Father Luis Olivares had it made. As treasurer of the Claretians, a congregation of Catholic missionaries, he was wined and dined by the titans of Wall Street. They flew him to New York first class, put him up in five-star hotels, took him to the best restaurants and treated him to Broadway shows.
“He even played up the part in the way that he dressed,” said Mario T. García, a UC Santa Barbara professor of Chicano and Chicana Studies. Velvet suits, French cuffs, Gucci shoes — Olivares cut a fine figure. “In fact, some people began to..”
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Online thrifted clothing platform offers affordability, convenience to students
“Myrka Vega thrifted for clothes out of necessity growing up.
Now, she thrifts out of enjoyment, sharing her hobby with the UCLA community through an online thrift store she founded with friends.
1997 Thrift launched Nov. 16, with UCLA students Myrka Vega, Maria Amaya Morfin and Terii Sanchez at the lead.
Morfin, a fourth-year international development studies student, said the concept of the store is simple: The group purchases clothing from various thrift stores in the area, currently offering one of each piece, with the goal of finding styles that cater to all UCLA students…”
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Mariachi de Uclatán performance to celebrate life and honor dead
“…The majority of UCLA is gearing up for the night of Oct. 31 with jack-o’-lanterns and cobwebs, but members of Mariachi de Uclatán will spend the evening making music and decorating altars with flowers and photographs.
For its upcoming Día de los Muertos performance Wednesday night, the student mariachi band ensemble will play a number of songs dedicated to remembering late musicians, as well as loved ones who have passed away. Its show at UCLA’s Fowler Museum, an installment of the Fowler Out Loud concert series, will feature musicians and dancers in traditional face paint resembling skeletons and altars that are constructed as a gateway to the afterlife. Even though students will pay homage to the dead, the spirit of the show is that of joyful remembrance rather than sorrowful mourning, said Elisa Quiñonez, a fourth-year history student and a co-musical director of Mariachi de Uclatán…”
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Starting From the Bottom: Why Mexicans are the Most Successful Immigrants in America
Who’s more successful: The child of Chinese immigrants who is now a prominent attorney, or a second-generation Mexican who completed high school and now holds a stable, blue collar job?
The answer depends on how you define success.
In fact, according to a study by University of California, Irvine, Sociology Professor Jennifer Lee and UCLA Sociology Professor Min Zhou, contrary to stereotypes, Mexican-Americans are the most successful second-generation group in the country. The reason is simple: The study considered not just where people finished, but from where they started.
The report serves as counter-point to arguments raised by Amy Chua, a Yale Law School professor better known as the Tiger Mom. In a new book, The Triple Package, Chua and her husband, Jed Rubenfeld, argue that some groups—namely Chinese, Jews, Cubans, and Nigerians—are more successful than others because they possess certain cultural traits that enable them to be…”
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Founders of tortilla company hope to eventually sell food to UCLA Dining
“…Ronald Alcazar spent years honing his family’s tortilla recipe with his mother for he and his brother’s new tortilla company. Today, the two UCLA alumni have their own tortilla factory and hope to sell their tortillas to UCLA Dining Services.
Anthony and Ronald Alcazar, who graduated from UCLA in 2006 and 2012 respectively, started their own flour tortilla company, Mr. Tortilla, in 2012. Anthony Alcazar said he urged his brother to start the company during Ronald Alcazar’s senior year of college because they wanted to share their family’s tortilla recipe.
Developing the tortilla recipe was a family endeavor, Ronald Acazar said. He spent over a year creating the formula with his mother and father. He said he prides Mr. Tortilla tortillas on being non-GMO and preservative-free…”
Alumna’s poetry, film pieces give voice to underrepresented communities
“Unbroken, / Almost forgotten— / Yet, stronger than ever.”
Alyssa Griego’s lyrics are a part of her newest project that combines poetry and film to comment on social issues associated with her identity as a queer Chicana woman. The alumna will release her latest self-directed video “Almost Forgotten” in early October, accompanying an original poem under the same title. The video makes use of symbolisms and colors that represent resilience to convey an ultimately hopeful message of strength in the face of adversity, she said.
“You can read (the poem) – it’s good and it sounds pretty,” Griego said. “But it’s a whole different story to hear it being performed, spoken, felt, and that’s what this video is going to convey.”..”
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CSU to overhaul remedial education, replace no-credit with credit-bearing classes
FERMIN LEAL/EDSOURCE TODAY
Students at Cal State Long Beach could be affected by changes in the Master Plan.
The California State University system plans to overhaul its remedial education system by 2018, scrapping no-credit courses in English and math and replacing them with credit classes that include extra tutoring and built-in study sessions.
Too many students are placed by testing or high school grades into noncredit classes that aim to prepare them for college-level work. But that strategy often backfires by making them feel unwelcome on campus and that they are wasting time and tuition money, officials told a Long Beach meeting of the CSU trustees Tuesday. A switch to specially-designed credit courses will create a sense of progress toward graduation, reduce attrition and expose students right away to a higher level of academic work, administrators behind the plan explained…”
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