CLACS reaches out at Upward Bound Indianapolis Sharing Latin American Issues with Upward Bound High School Students Despite the ice and snowy roads, nine CLACS graduate students made their way to IUPUI on January 25th to present workshops on Latin American topics to over 50 Upward Bound (UB) students. Upward Bound is a federally funded TRIO program that works to prepare first generation/low income students for college. Besides providing tutoring services and a summer college-prep program, Upward Bound hosts “Saturdays Session” throughout the academic school year. During these sessions, students have an opportunity to gain insight on college related matters and broaden their world view through various presentations. CLACS students then not only had to create presentations related to Latin America, but most importantly find a way to connect their topics to the students’ own educational goals and ambitions. For instance, in one of the sessions, students were able to learn about the current student protests in Chile. Yet towards the end of the presentation, CLACS graduate students began to ask UB students to reflect on which ways the U.S. education system should change. “Like the students in Chile, you also have a right to demand for a better education,” said Kathryn Lehman, a current M.A. student in CLACS. In total, there were four presentations: -Education for All: Education as a Human Right in the Americas -Going Beyond the “Facts” and a closer look at Minorities in Higher Education -The Right to Study: What U.S. Students Should Learn from the -Separate and still Unequal: The History of School Segregation and what it means today
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All of the UB students were divided into two groups and had the opportunity to attend two presentations. In order to gauge how our efforts resonated with the students experience, they were given a survey at the end of the event.. Before the presentations, only 30% of students had an interest in Latin America. Afterwards, 86% of students wanted to learn more about Latin America or the Caribbean. “Overall the students seemed very happy and excited to have us there,” said M.A. student Diana Velazquez. This outreach event was such a success and it demonstrates the new path Latin American Studies is heading. It is not just about academia but also finding ways to share this knowledge with those around us. Enfoque - Page 12