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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Calif. Latinos Surge Into College, But Graduation Rates Lag
The number of Latinos in college in California is surging, but their graduation rates are still far behind other groups, according to a new report.
Researchers at Georgetown University found that 12 percent of Latinos have a bachelor’s degree or higher, compared to 43 percent of whites and 24 percent of African-Americans.
Audrey Dow, senior vice president at the Campaign for College Opportunity, a California nonprofit group, says Latinos are now fully represented at community colleges, but not at four-year schools…
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6 signs learning a second language enhances student success
Having the ability to speak a second language helps recent graduates stand out in the job applicant pool — a reality that K12 and higher education institutions can tap into for improving student ROI. Education Dive points out 6 promising signs that investing in second language programs will have many ancillary benefits…
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Opening New Doors
…“It’s a space for our underrepresented and underserved students to find a community and to find academic support, and to find a sense of belonging at UCSB,” said Phommasa. “Even though our primary focus is on academic support, our whole focus is to make sure the students we serve find a place and find support here, because it is such a large institution that is challenging to navigate.”…
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Mexican Immigration and the Political Polarization of the United States
Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, the wretched refuse of your teeming shore. Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me.” Engraved on a slab of bronze, these hallowed words, written by Emma Lazarus, greeted millions of immigrants as they gazed upon the Statue of Liberty with hopeful eyes. Yet, nearly one hundred and thirty years after Lazarus penned her famous poem, there is much confusion over the issue of immigration. Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump, paralleling Miss Lazarus’s beckoning, “Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me,” recently complained, “When Mexico sends people, they’re not sending their best.” Disregarding political decorum altogether, Trump continued: “They’re…
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Mexican Views of the U.S. Turn Sharply Negative
Widespread dissatisfaction with economy and political leaders
By Margaret Vice and Hanyu Chwe
More Mexicans view the United States unfavorably than at any time in the past decade and a half. Nearly two-thirds of Mexicans (65%) express a negative opinion of the U.S., more than double the share two years ago (29%). Mexicans’ opinions about the economic relationship with their country’s northern neighbor are also deteriorating, though less dramatically: 55% now say economic ties between Mexico and the U.S. are good for their country, down from 70% in 2013…
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My Professional Journey
MJT Vasquez – Journeys to Professional Excellence: Stories of …, 2017 – books.google.com
The most wonderful, exciting, humbling, and intimidating period in my life was my service as
president of the American Psychological Association (APA). The decision to run, the process
of campaigning, the election, and the period of service were all part of that phase of my…
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Fact Tank – Our Lives in Numbers September 18, 2017 How the U.S. Hispanic population is changing
The Latino population in the United States has reached nearly 58 million in 2016 and has been the principal driver of U.S. demographic growth, accounting for half of national population growth since 2000. The Latino population itself has evolved during this time, with changes in immigration, education and other characteristics.
This summary draws on a statistical portrait of the nation’s Hispanic population, which includes trends going back to 1980. Here are some key facts about the nation’s Latino population…
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When it comes to the Emmys, where are the Latino nominees?
It has been two years since a joyful Rita Moreno took the stage to accept her SAG Achievement Award, where a star-studded crowd celebrated her impactful contribution to film and television. As an ex-actor and writer (but more importantly as a Latino) I witnessed with so much pride and admiration because it was a moment where Hollywood was rightfully acknowledging a Puerto Rican powerhouse, the first and only Latina to have won an Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony award. The historical importance of her career – or those of Desi Arnaz, Cantinflas or the Mexican spitfire, Lupe Velez (I recommend 1933’s Hot Pepper) – cannot be taken for granted because it opened the door of diversity and acceptance…
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The Importance of Training Teachers to Better Understand Their Native Students
Native American students make up 1.4 percent of the students in Washington state public schools. And they have the lowest graduation rate of any ethnic group, with just 56.4 percent earning a high school diploma in four years.
“I was that young person, I dropped out of school. I was one of those statistics of Native women dropouts,” says Dawn Hardison-Stevens, who is a member of the Steilacoom Tribal Council…
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Minority support programs lay the groundwork for broader student success
Miguel Angel Acosta Muñoz is immensely frustrated by the idea that there is little recognition that much of what we now see as innovative practices in student affairs were actually incubated in ethnic studies departments on campuses across the country. After working in higher education in both Chicago and New Mexico for 25 years and serving on the board for Albuquerque Public Schools, Acosta Muñoz is these days channeling his efforts towards family-community-school partnership in New Mexico, but feels those still carrying the torch in higher ed are still largely going unrecognized…
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From Music to Movies to TV, Latinos Are Widely Underrepresented – And I’m Done With It
Following the ‘Despacito’ VMA snub, actor John Leguizamo pens a powerful essay on Latinos’ absence from film, TV and media in general.
It was OK in the ’50s, ’60s and ’70s because we’d tell ourselves, “They don’t know better,” as a justification to ease our alienation. It wasn’t fair, but it was status quo. Not knowing better is a symptom of ignorance, not evil. We assumed people over time just needed to become educated, and in turn would empower Latino equality in the arts. We were wrong… I was wrong…
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A Nomadic Life Draws Writer To Border Lands, Meet Stephanie Elizondo Griest
Stephanie Elizondo Griest grew up between two cultural identities: her father is white from Kansas, and her mother is Chicana, or Mexican-American.
As a young child she discovered that when she identified as Chicana, she had access to fewer opportunities, and doors that were once open seemed to close. She later spent decades re-discovering Mexican-American culture and fought to highlight the stories of those living at both cultural and physical borders…
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Savoring the Spanish of My Youth, as the Language Marches On
ALBUQUERQUE — Something about the languages we speak fascinates me.
Roaming around Latin America as a correspondent for more than a decade, I wrote about Palenquero, a Creole language kept alive by descendants of runaway slaves in northern Colombia; Sranan Tongo, Suriname’s lingua franca; Papiamentu, the vibrant language of Curaçao; and even learned how to say “Mba’éichapa?” — How are you? — in Guaraní, the indigenous language that holds sway in Paraguay.
When I returned to the United States in July, I wondered what it would be like to live in a country where the Spanish language is so politicized that some speakers are facing new hostility. I was puzzled as to why Spanish seemed so threatening in an English-speaking superpower. I asked myself, what does the future hold for Spanish in the United States and around the world?…
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How can higher ed institutions increase access for high-achieving, low-income students?
A new report from the Jack Kent Coolke Foundation found well-off students outnumber their low-income peers at selective colleges 24:1.
“Selective colleges and universities must commit to expanding access for high-achieving, low-income students and opening the doors of our higher education system to students based on true merit rather than family income,” Jennifer Glynn, Ph.D. wrote in the report, “Opening Doors: How Selective Colleges and Universities Are Expanding Access for High-Achieving, Low-Income Students.”…
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Look to Latinos to drive US economic growth
The one thing President Trump, Democrats, the chattering class and, most importantly, the American public can agree upon is the need for higher U.S. economic growth. An analysis from June 28, Latino GDP Report, highlights the Latino contribution to the U.S. economy. It provides helpful insight to our country’s challenge of creating greater economic growth.
President Trump promises annual GDP growth of 3 percent, the average rate after World War II. Until recently, we had averaged 2.3 percent. The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) today projects, absent fundamental changes in economic policy, GDP growth of 1.8 percent in the foreseeable future. Why the recent slowdown in economic growth and the pessimistic CBO forecast?…
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Latino Food Industry Association launches
LOS ANGELES — The Latino Food Industry Association (LFIA) announced its official launch to serve its members and educate the public and policy makers on the contributions and significant impact made buy Latino-owned food businesses on the US economy.
“Given the Hispanic market’s $1.5 trillion in annual buying power and the rapid growth of Hispanic-owned businesses in the food and beverage segment, many of our members felt it was time to launch the LFIA to maximize our position in the industry,” said Ruben Smith, LFIA chairman. “Our members include grocery chains…
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VIDEO: 5 Oakland police officers of Mexican heritage recognized for outstanding service in the community
OAKLAND (KRON) — Five police officers of Mexican heritage were recognized Thursday for their outstanding service in the community.
The ceremony took place at the consulate general office of Mexico in San Francisco.
The five officers were chosen by their peers in the Oakland Police Department.
The consulate general says this is the first time Mexican officers from the Bay Area received honorary recognition from his office…
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Cal State to no longer mandate remedial classes and placement exams
In an executive order, State Chancellor Timothy P. White, directed Cal State to get rid of the requirement that students complete noncredit remedial classes to help prepare them for college courses — a decision which could affect about 25,000 students. The schools will also discontinue Math and English placement exams.
The policy change, which will go into effect in the fall of 2018, comes after Cal State had pledged to more than double its four-year graduation rate to 40% by 2025. According to the Los Angeles Times, it also arrives after many have begun questioning how helpful remedial classes really are, with concern that the noncredit courses which must be completed in a student’s first year may spur many students to drop out…
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Webster University targets drop-outs for re-enrollment
According to 2015 data reported in Forbes, 22% of Americans have attended some college without reaching graduation.
The reasons students may drop out of college or discontinue taking classes are greatly varied, but nearly half of prospective college students are concerned they may have to drop out at some point in their academic careers.
Michael Cottam, the associate vice president for academic affairs and the director of the Online Learning Center at Webster University, said many of the students who have discontinued classes and degree programs at his institution face the crush of numerous personal and professional responsibilities. But now, it is these students Webster is targeting for re-enrollment, hoping to move the number of individuals with a degree forward…
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Tony Ortega paints the Chicano experience in Denver
HIGHLAND — “My purpose is to preserve Mexican-Americans’ cultural identity, while walking alongside the dominant culture,” says Tony Ortega, a Northwest Denver artist and associate professor at Regis University.
In La Marcha de Ernesto Che Lincoln, the face of Che Guevara is superimposed over the Lincoln memorial. Ortega pulls images from both cultures to make social statements.
Ortega’s art juxtaposes the two cultures in sometimes humorous ways. “I mix American pop culture with Mexican pop culture, like putting Chicano leaders on Mt. Rushmore and Our Lady of Guadalupe as the Statue of Liberty. My Mickey Mouse is a Day of the Dead character and Captain America is Capitano Americano, who fights for dreamers. The images are pulled from both cultures, overlapped and juxtaposed. They are silly but they are also social statements.”…
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