Minority students face further disadvantages in education

In a press release by the U.S. Department of Education this month, their findings show that minority students across America are often taught by inexperienced and often underpaid teachers, leaving them unprepared for obtaining a spot In college or university. The announcement was made at Howard University, their data obtained through a survey of over 72,000 schools which serve the gross majority of students in the United States. Among their findings: – teachers in high minority schools were paid significantly less than teachers in low minority schools in the same area. The articles cover topics ranging from student retention rate, college readiness, finance, disciplinary actions, and bullying. Source: http://www.ed.gov/news/press-releases/new-data-us-department-education-highlights-educational-inequities-around-teache  

Honoring the first of many

Nearly 60 years ago, there wasn’t a single black cadet graduating from the Coast Guard Academy, that is until 1966 when Merle Smith came along. The 67-year-old is being honored by the service academy with a pioneer award but speculation as for why now seems to be the hotter topic. According to Boston.com, the academy has been under the steady gaze of Congress due to poor enrollment rates by minorities. While the paper reports that Smith is impressed with the recent efforts to recruit diverse recruits,  it is reported that only 5 percent of minority recruits are African American. Smith, among other five other individuals, will be honored at Eclipse Week this coming Sunday, an event that was started to support minorities in the program and generate awareness of their contributions.  

http://www.boston.com/news/education/k_12/articles/2012/03/30/coast_guard_academy_to_honor_first_black_grad/  

 

Minorities at Penn State

As the trend of minority students failing to achieve high graduation rates continues to buck on, a recent report has been released showing that Penn State has one of the highest graduation rates in the nation. Published by The Chronicle of Higher Education, minorities in Penn State have a lower four year graduation rate when compare to the Caucasian population in the university. According to the data, while 90.9 percent of the Caucasian population graduated within four years, that percentage dropped to 82.2 percent for black students and 87.3 percent for Asian students. Why the difference? The article and a few of its subjects mention the possibility that ethnic students are ill prepared or don’t have the proper resource prior to beginning of their freshman year. With reports by other organizations like the Civil Rights Project releasing reports about minority students being ill equipped to handle college life due to poorly funded public high schools, the guess offered in this article seems far too accurate. http://thedp.com/index.php/article/2012/03/minorities_fall_behind_in_graduation_rates  

Multi-language programs reflect student diversity

By Katherine Acuna

Classrooms today are like a microcosm snapshot of the global diversity within the United States. Instead of separating non-native English speakers from the rest of the class, some public schools are creating dual language immersion programs according to the California Department of Education. These programs blend English speakers and non-native speakers together so both can learn a second language at the same time. Students are taught with lessons divided between English and another elected foreign language, such as Spanish, Mandarin or Korean. This could be a small step, by having students engage in learning another language together, to help students understand that differences in other cultures as positive and not negative. Embracing diversity can only help bring unity within our communities and abroad.

Related Article:

Dual-Language Programs Growing In Popularity Across California

Alumni Mentoring to South L.A High School Students Inspires Hope

The sky is the limit when one believes it

By Katherine Acuna

High school students in impoverished neighborhoods face many challenges in and out of school. Restructuring under performing schools and replacing an entire teaching staff are not always enough to propel a student to stay engaged, as Fremont’s high school graduation rates indicate at 54.3 percent compared to 78.59 percent statewide graduations in 2009-10 academic year.

Sometimes, that extra nudge can come from a fellow student who walked down the same streets, down the same halls, faced similar challenges but instead of dropping out, successfully graduated. Alumni mentoring can inspire hope and guidance for students, so they too can believe it is possible to overcome hardships and obstacles. The John C. Fremont High Alumni Foundation (FHSAF) is doing just that and more. All proceeds from their fundraising events are for scholarships for college-bound seniors. Now, that’s a winning combination.

Related article: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/02/26/fremont-high-south-los-angeles_n_1302062.html?ncid=edlinkusaolp00000003

Nuevos Datos Revelados de Parte de la Oficina del Censo

El día jueves Febrero 17 de 2011 la Oficina del Censo de los Estados Unidos revelo nuevas estadísticas más detalladas a los gobernadores  del estado de Texas.  Los datos proporcionados dieron una primera mirada a temas como enumeración de la población en áreas pequeñas, raza, edad para votar y connotaciones sobre la poblacion de origen hispano en este estado.

Cifras para tener en cuenta  despues de estos resultados están resumidas en estos tres importantes puntos:

-  Las cifras revelaron que los cinco lugares más poblados en Texas en orden son: Houston, San Antonio, Dallas, Austin y por ultimo Fort Worth.

- La población Latina en este estado creció en un 41.8 por ciento entre el año 2000 y el 2010

- Entre el periodo de 2000 y 2010, La población Asiática fue la que presentó un mayor crecimiento  con un 71.5 por ciento en comparación a toda la población.

Para leer todo el comunicado de prensa  puede visitar la pagina oficial de la Oficina del Censo.

La Próxima semana la Oficina del Censo 2010 revelara los resultados de las ciudades de: Alabama, Colorado, Hawaii, Missouri, Nevada, Oregon, Utah y Washington

Por ahora los dejo con un video hecho por la oficina Del Censo en Estados Unidos donde explican la importancia de saber el número de personas en cada estado y el valor de esta cifra en temas electorales.

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Agradecimiento especial a HispanicPRblog por su ayuda.

Paula Duran

Que Comemos?

Esta es una de las decisiones que un estudiante se hará cada día al llegarse la hora de la comida.  En la universidad de Cal State Northridge, a los estudiantes se les ofrece una variedad de comida.  Pueden comprar algo procesado, como sopas instantáneas, o algo natural como las frutas o vegetales.  Hay numerosas cantidades de comida chatarra como las papas, dulces y refrescos.  Pero igual tienen opciones por comer comida más saludable.  Por ejemplo, los estudiantes pueden optar por comprar ensaladas, sopas de verduras y asta sushi.  El sushi es una comida japonesa y es muy saludable.  Los hacen con diferentes ingredientes como aguacate, pepino, caviar, y cangrejo.  Con el pescado, arroz blanco y algas, esta comida contiene una variedad de vitaminas y grasas saludables.  Pero no muchos saben ni lo compran.  Entonces, como deciden que es lo que comen?  Será por el costo?  Será por la localidad del restaurante?  Talvez cual sea más accesible.  Deberían de educar a los estudiantes a comer saludable, que al fin es muy importante en la vida.

Aqui pueden ver un video en como hacer sushi, una comida facil y muy nutritiva.

HOY DESAYUNE…

La vida del estudiante por lo general no es más que libros, horas en clases, investigaciones, trabajos, no mucho dinero, supervivencia absoluta con lo que se tiene y disfrutar de cada día.

Por esto mismo es importante tener una dieta balaceada, pues la vida de estos es muy ocupada, y requiere de mucha energía, una buena alimentación y concentración para rendir.

Lo mas importante aquí es entender que para tener energía suficiente para rendir al máximo, y tener una concentración increíble para tener un entendimiento profundo, es imperativo saber como comer.

El primer paso de esta serie de blogs es tener una idea de que se están alimentando los estudiantes. Como el desayudo es la comida mas importante y esencial para tener un día efectivo, se realizó una pequeña encuesta con quince estudiantes de  la Universidad de Northdrige sobre que habían comido al desayuno. Los resultados son dramáticos, varían desde un desayuno simple como un jugo de naranja o café, hasta uno más completo como, huevos con tocineta, pancakes y una soda

Este es un video interactivo con un mensaje claro – El desayuno es la comida mas importante del día. Esta información pretende informar, mas no recetar. Domina tu cuchara -Entérate! Infórmate

 

Con Toda-

Students and Stress

It is no surprise for students to feel overwhelmed when in college but this topic shouldn’t be taken lightly. According to the National College Health Assessment 1 in 5 students feel stressed during their academic year. Something to keep in mind when stressed, is that feeling stressed is unescapable and it’s important to recognize it and cope with it. Some tips to consider when stressed is to recognize the things that make you stressed, this way you’ll able to analyze what is making you stressed and take action. Another important factor is to manage and plan your time wisely, by doing so you’ll be able to have time for relaxation. So remember to plan ahead to avoid any unnecessary stress.

Crimes at CSUN

For those that didn’t know crime reports that occur on and near school campuses must be published according to the Clery Act. Every campus that participates in the federal student financial aid must release an annual report disclosing the crimes and statistics. Unfortunately, theft and burglary are the most common crimes at CSUN. In 2009 331 thefts and 14 burglaries occurred on the CSUN campus. The most common theft were bikes. In the months of September to November of 2010 21 bikes were stolen according to the crime log published on the CSUN campus police website. It’s important for students to use a safe lock like the U-lock that will be harder for thieves to open. To prevent more bicycles from being stolen, CSUN has created the Matador Bicycle compound were students, staff and faculty can place their bikes and register the bike incase stolen and lost. Remember that it’s important to call the police department if you ever see any suspicious activity on campus to prevent more crimes.