Claremo nt Gradua te Univer sit y Leads the Charge as it s Fir st to Publicl y Co mmit to NAACP's D iver sit y Pledge

By Manny Sandoval

In a bold move reflecting its dedication to inclusivity, Claremont Graduate University (CGU) has publicly announced its signature on the NAACP's "Diversity No Matter What" pledge for higher education This decision comes on the heels of the Supreme Court's recent verdict on college admissions While many institutions nationwide have signed the pledge, CGU stands out as the first to declare its commitment openly

University President Len Jessup remarked, “I believe it’s important for us to go on record, not only by signing the NAACP pledge but by publicly sharing our belief in diversity, equity, and inclusion in all areas of university life: enrollment, hiring, and campus culture ”

Under Jessup's leadership over the past five years, there's been a notable surge in the representation of BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, People of Color) students, now accounting for 54% of the domestic student body, a jump from 44% prior to his tenure Furthermore, since

2018, 63% of the tenured or tenure-track faculty and 43% of Board of Trustees members identified as BIPOC

Jessup emphasized, “This isn't a moment of self-congratulation It's an ongoing journey, and there's much ground to cover While we can't rewrite history, we can and will shape our present and future ”

CGU's commitment is further solidified in its Strategic Plan, ratified on March 8, 2020 Among its primary objectives is the cultivation of an academic community rooted in inclusive excellence This encompasses:

Strategic planning centered on diversity and the execution of initiatives that bring tangible, positive change to the campus

Championing the recruitment, retention, and success of a diverse body of faculty, staff, students, alumni, and trustees

Nurturing a campus ethos of respect and justice, while endorsing research and community initiatives that drive positive societal transformation

Quamina Carter, vice president of student affairs and chair of the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee, shared, "The strides CGU has made in its mission to attract and nurture a diverse community of students, staff, faculty, and trustees are commendable Diversity enriches intellectual dialogue, widens horizons, and equips our scholars for a globally connected world I'm honored to witness CGU's renewed dedication to molding global citizens via transformative graduate education "

The NAACP lauded CGU's proactive stance Ivory A Toldson, PhD, national director of education innovation and research, stated, “I commend Claremont Graduate University for their public commitment to the Diversity No Matter What pledge Their actions underscore a genuine desire to foster a culture where everyone belongs and is respected It's a testament to their dedication to mirroring the nation's diversity in higher education and championing equity and justice for historically marginalized students I'm optimistic that other institutions will be inspired by CGU's example and join this crucial mission ”

Latin o Ed ucation and Advocacy Days Summit Ann oun ces H ono rar y Ch air s f or Sept. 29 Co nfer ence, Activ ist Do lo res Hu er ta and Actor Emilio Rivera Named Ho norar y Chair s

Community News

Activist Dolores Huerta has been named the honorary chair/madrina de honor and actor Emilio Rivera will be the honorary chair/padrino de honor for the Latino Education & Advocacy Days LEAD Summit XII, Sept 29 at Cal State San Bernardino

And both are familiar with the summit’s theme, “¡Ya Basta! – Enough is Enough!: Education and Violence in the Context of our Schools, Community Safety, and Law-Enforcement, having experienced different strands of it, said Enrique Murillo Jr , executive director of LEAD and CSUSB professor of education

“In September 1988, in front of the St Francis Hotel in Union Square, Huerta was severely beaten by San Francisco Police officer Frank Achim during a peaceful and lawful protest of the policies/platform of then-candidate for president, George H W Bush,” Murillo said “The batonbeating caused significant internal injuries to her torso, resulting in several broken ribs and requiring the removal of her spleen in emergency surgery The beating was caught on videotape and broadcast widely on local television news Later, Huerta won a large judgment against the SFPD and the city of San Francisco for the attack, the proceeds of which she used for the benefit of farm workers As a result of this assault and the suit, the SFPD was pressured to change its crowd control policies and its process of officer discipline ”

Huerta is one of the most influential Chicana/Latinas of the 20th century, known for her work as a community organizer, labor activist, civil rights leader and advocate for social, economic and environmental justice She is the founder and president of the Dolores Huerta Foundation, and co-founded the United Farm Workers of America with the late Cesar Chavez

She has worked for labor rights and social justice for almost 60 years In 1962, she and Chavez founded the United Farm Workers union She served as vice president and played a critical role in many of the union’s accomplish- ments for four decades

In 2002, she received the Puffin/Nation $100,000 prize for Creative Citizenship, which she used to establish the Dolores Huerta Foundation (DHF) The foundation is connecting groundbreaking community-based organizing to state and national movements to register and educate voters; advocate for education reform; bring about infrastructure improvements in low-income communities; advocate for greater equality for the LGBT community; and create strong leadership development

Huerta has received numerous awards, including The Eleanor Roosevelt Humans Rights Award from President Bill Clinton in 1998 And in 2012 President Barack Obama bestowed Huerta with The Presidential Medal of Freedom, the highest civilian honor in the United States

Rivera’s experience goes beyond his portrayals on the big and small screen “Emilio grew up in a Frogtown, an impoverished neighborhood of Los Angeles, Elysian Valley, from a gang family,” Murillo said “With nearly 150 acting credits to his name, he is known for his authenticity and presence on screen, especially while depicting criminals and law enforcement officers ”

In his role as Marcus Álvarez in the television series “Mayans M C , ” Emilio Rivera is often referred to as “El Padrino,” a term of immense respect In real life, he bears the title of padrino as the summit’s honorary chair

Rivera was born in San Antonio, Texas, and grew up in Los Angeles After graduating from high school, he joined the U S Army but later became associated with street gangs, took drugs and drank

But for his love of acting, Rivera may have continued down that path Acting, with its training and discipline, he said, saved his life His credentials places him among the top Latino actors

While he may be most visible as Marcus Álvarez in “Mayans M C , ” and its predecessor, “Sons of Anarchy,” he also has a prominent role in Eva Longoria’s feature film,

“Flamin’ Hot,” as well as “High Crimes” (with Ashley Judd and Morgan Freeman) and Confessions of a Dangerous Mind” (with George Clooney and Julia Roberts)

Each year the summit, which is open to the public and free to attend, brings together teaching professionals and educators, researchers, academics, scholars, administrators, independent writers and artists, policy and program specialists, students, parents, civic leaders, activists and advocates – all sharing a common interest and commitment to education issues that impact Latinos to help them define the future

Programs during the summit will examine the challenges the community faces Scheduled panel discussions will include Historical, Cultural and Racial Responsiveness and Revitalization: Building Dignity and Social Justice from the Massacre at El Porvenir to Uvalde”; “Missing and Murdered Indigenous People”; “Gun Violence Prevention: Students Need Safe Environments to Learn, Live, and Grow”; “Federal Response & Interagency Working Group: Resources and Preparedness”; and “Police Use of Excessive Force/Raza Database Project ”

In addition, the summit’s featured photo exhibit, “Resilience in Inland Southern California: Enduring Policing, Violence and Poverty ” by Humberto Flores will present a human perspective on the issue Flores, a first-generation Chicano from the Inland Empire, is a doctoral candidate in sociology from UC Santa Barbara whose research examines the brunt of policing in the Inland Empire He was a featured speaker for the university’s Conversations on Race and Policing during the 2023 spring semester

Registration is now open for the summit, which will take place from 8 a m -3 p m Sept 29 at the Santos Manuel Student Union South Visit the 2023 LEAD Summit XII Registration webpage to reserve your spot; attending the summit is free

Visit the LEAD Summit XII website for more information on the summit and LEAD’s other programs

Ca lifo r ni a Credit Unio n Lo ok ing to Fund I nnovat ive San Ber na rdino Co unt y Teacher P ro jects Community News

California Credit Union encourages San Bernardino County teachers who have an innovative class project idea to apply for a credit union grant through its Teacher Grant program

The California Credit Union grant program is now available to full-time teachers in San Bernardino, Los Angeles, Orange County, and Ventura or credit union members teaching in California, looking to fund special learning opportunities for their students

The project should have clearly defined learning ob- jectives tied to students’ academic needs, display creativity, and benefit a significant number of students

Ten California Credit Union grants of $500 each will be awarded to area teachers in early October in the fall program

“We were founded 90 years ago by a local teacher, and supporting our education community has always been an important part of our heritage We’re excited to once again offer this grant program to help teachers light up their classrooms with an innovative learning opportunity for their students,” said California Credit Union President/CEO Steve O’Connell “We encourage any teacher who has an exciting project idea to take just a few min- utes to apply for one of our grants ”

Interested teachers can find more information and apply online here The application deadline is September 15, 2023

Since the creation of the program in 2012, California Credit Union has awarded $175,000 in teacher grants to benefit students across Southern California

The spring grant program funded a wide range of projects, including writing books about kindness, creating an art journaling project, opening a student Wellness Center, and starting a pickleball program, among others

Big Oil’s ‘Latino Voice’ Campaign is a Veiled Attempt to Silence Tr ue Advocates f or Clean Air

By MaCarmen Gonzalez

The oil industry says it will see to it that Latino voices are heard in the debate over the future of energy in California

They’re wrong We don’t need Big Oil to voice our desire to live in communities with clean air and free from pollution and lung diseases

The Western States Petroleum Association (WSPA) says it needs to help state legislators understand what they call a new point of view from Latinos who are supposedly being ignored in the energy debate They call this campaign “Levanta Tu Voz (Raise Your Voice)

But their campaign is a big lie

In Sacramento, Latino voices are already heard through state legislators and air regulators defending their communities’ interests with clear legislation and targeted regulations to reduce emissions in freight communities where our children learn, play and breathe This is the type of change Latinos and communities of color need

We know too well how corporations like Amazon, Walmart, UPS, and others impact our lives They’ve helped bring over 1 billion square feet of warehousing to the Inland Empire Along with freeways and railyards, these massive structures attract thousands of diesel trucks daily, contributing to the worst ozone and particulate pollution in the entire country

We know that the goods movement shifting away from diesel will stop diesel death and significantly improve our quality of living

Of course, the oil industry does not share this view The problem for them isn’t the absence of a valid Latino point of view but instead finding someone who thinks like them: that profits have more value than health

They want to distract us with superficial arguments so that we forget the devastating impact of pollution from oil production and vehicle emissions on the health of minority communi- ties And for that, they are willing to do just about anything

For example, they promote voices that suggest that there’s a class war between those whom they refer to as the rich with their fancy electric cars and the poor, who rely on public transportation and bicycles They want to convince Latinos that the poor will pay more for expensive clean energy than the rich and that it would be better to leave things as they are and make no changes

They are wrong We do not share the duplicitous approach that the health of our communities should be sacrificed for the economy But they want to convince us that it has to be all or nothing; for them, it’s nothing

Fossil fuel companies want to pretend now to have a social conscience and care about people experiencing poverty, when they never were concerned in the past, to squeeze consumers so they could make record profits In fact, we know they are willing to spend millions to deceive us and stop any progress to address climate change

As a Latina living near a diesel death zone, I will not allow the fossil fuel industry to narrow down our concerns to a public relations campaign Here the choice is crystal clear: we must decide between protecting our health or tolerating asthma and cancer-causing pollution

As people are directly impacted by diesel emissions and the operations used by fossil fuel companies, we will not allow wealthy corporations to misinform the community As people living in environmental justice communities, we are the experts due to our lived experience Fossil fuel corporations are rooted in greed and corruption

The industry’s campaign aims to confuse and divide us by promoting baseless arguments Don’t be fooled In the Inland Empire, rest assured, we don’t need the fossil fuel companies to tell us what is best for Latinos or to make us heard

This is my voice!