Latino Education Summit 2008

K-12 Education: What Can School Board Members and
School Superintendents Do to Assure Student Success?

Friday, May 23, 2008

UCLA Faculty Center

9:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.

--- Pre-Summit Registration CLOSED ---
--- There is No Registration Fee ---

Only individual online registrations will be accepted.
Walk-in registration will not be offered.

*UCLA charges $8 for parking

The UCLA Chicano Studies Research Center (CSRC) and the Graduate School of Education and Information Studies (GSEIS) are pleased to announce the Third Annual UCLA Latina/o Education Summit. By bringing together scholars, educators, community representatives, policy makers, and students, the education summit series spotlights the critical factors facing Latina/o students at each segment of the education pipeline and explores viable policy recommendations and initiatives that can increase the number of Latina/o students who earn undergraduate and graduate degrees.

Latina/o students compose half of the K-12 student population in California. Yet national data show that of every 100 Latino elementary school students, almost half do not graduate from high school. Educational outcomes are even worse for Chicana/os: more than half of these students drop out before graduation. It is an inescapable fact that the future of the Latina/o community and the future of California will be determined by the efforts made to improve not only educational conditions for Latina/o students but also their success in our schools. Effective efforts will ensure that Latina/os will be able to improve their lives and to significantly contribute to California.

The theme for the third education summit is “K-12 Education: What Can School Board Members and School Superintendents Do to Assure Student Success?” The summit brings together school board members and school superintendents from the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) and the Montebello Unified School District (MUSD), which have the largest enrollments of Latino students in the county, and the Los Angeles County Office of Education, which provides services to the county’s eighty school districts. These policy makers will identify and explore factors at the primary and secondary levels that are critical if Latina/o students are to make successful transitions through the education pipeline.

Latina/o Education Summit 2008

K-12 Education: What Can School Board Members and School Superintendents Do to Assure Student Success? Friday, May 23, 2008 UCLA Faculty Center 9:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. --- Pre-Summit Registration CLOSED --- --- There is No Registration Fee --- Only individual online registrations will be accepted. Walk-in registration will not be offered. *UCLA charges $8 for parking The UCLA Chicano Studies Research Center (CSRC) and the Graduate School of Education and Information Studies (GSEIS) are pleased to announce the Third Annual UCLA Latina/o Education Summit. By bringing together scholars, educators, community representatives, policy makers, and students, the education summit series spotlights the critical factors facing Latina/o students at each segment of the education pipeline and explores viable policy recommendations and initiatives that can increase the number of Latina/o students who earn undergraduate and graduate degrees. Latina/o students compose half of the K-12 student population in California. Yet national data show that of every 100 Latino elementary school students, almost half do not graduate from high school. Educational outcomes are even worse for Chicana/os: more than half of these students drop out before graduation. It is an inescapable fact that the future of the Latina/o community and the future of California will be determined by the efforts made to improve not only educational conditions for Latina/o students but also their success in our schools. Effective efforts will ensure that Latina/os will be able to improve their lives and to significantly contribute to California. The theme for the third education summit is “K-12 Education: What Can School Board Members and School Superintendents Do to Assure Student Success?” The summit brings together school board members and school superintendents from the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) and the Montebello Unified School District (MUSD), which have the largest enrollments of Latino students in the county, and the Los Angeles County Office of Education, which provides services to the county’s eighty school districts. These policy makers will identify and explore factors at the primary and secondary levels that are critical if Latina/o students are to make successful transitions through the education pipeline.
Reports from previous Summits Coinciding with the summits in 2006 and 2007, the CSRC Press released a series of publications that presented valuable information and policy recommendations on Latina/o education. These briefs and reports are available online: An Examination of Latina/o Transfer Students in California's Postsecondary Institutions, May 2007 (.pdf) Leaks in the Chicana and Chicano Educational Pipeline, March 2006 (.pdf) Community College as a Pathway to Chicana Doctorate Production, June 2005 (.pdf) Latina Equity in Education: Gaining Access to Academic Enrichment Programs, February 2003 (.pdf) Latina/o Transfer Students: Understanding the Critical Role of the Transfer Process in California’s Postsecondary Institutions, May 2007 (.pdf) Falling through the Cracks: Critical Transitions in the Latina/o Educational Pipeline: 2006 Education Summit Report, March 2006 (.pdf)
2008 Conference Program 9:00 a.m. Registration UCLA Faculty Center, California Room 9:30 a.m. Welcome and Introductions Director Chon A. Noriega, UCLA Chicano Studies Research Center Vice Chancellor Claudia Mitchell-Kernan, UCLA Graduate Studies Dean Aimee Dorr, Graduate School of Education and Information Studies Conference Moderator Professor Jose Luis Santos, Graduate School of Education and Information Studies 10:00 a.m. Los Angeles Unified School District Ms. Monica Garcia, President, Board of Education Ms. Yolie Flores Aguilar, Member, Board of Education Ms. Alma Pena-Sanchez, Assistant Superintendent 11:45 a.m. Lunch 1:00 p.m. Montebello Unified School District Ms. Marcella Calderon, President, Board of Education Mr. Hector A. Chacon, Member, Board of Education Mr. Edward Velasquez, Superintendent 2:15 p.m. Break 2:45 p.m. Los Angeles County Office of Education Dr. Darline P. Robles, County Superintendent of Schools Mr. Thomas A. Saenz, Member, Board of Education 3:45 p.m. Break 4:00 p.m. Concluding Session Professor Jose Luis Santos and Panel Reporters Lorelle Espinosa and Doug Barrera Closing Remarks Director Chon A. Noriega, UCLA Chicano Studies Research Center 5:00 p.m. Reception The questions that the 2008 Latino Education Summit panelists, including school board members and school superintendents, will address in their presentations and discuss with the moderator include: The Latina/o educational pipeline does not ensure a smooth flow of students from one end of the conduit to the other, but a broken trickle of fewer and fewer students graduating from each level. What are the critical transition points for Latino students from K through 12, and what can be done to improve the educational outcomes for Latinos at the K – 12 levels? In school districts with large Latino student enrollments, what are the roles of the school board member and the superintendent? How can school boards and school superintendents positively influence student success at the K – 12 levels and encourage college enrollment among Latina/o students? How do school boards and superintendents identify and support programs and pedagogical tools, “best practices,” that influence Latino student achievement in K-12 education? Within LAUSD, MUSD, and the Los Angeles County what are some of the “best practices” that relate to Latina/o student academic success at the K – 12 level and college-going? Parental expectations and aspirations about going to college have a positive effect on baccalaureate attainment. What if any programs, policies do you have in place to encourage and shape college going aspirations? More and more, we know that middle school is a key transition and that students, particularly Latinas and Latinos, are more likely to attend and attain a bachelor’s degree if they have a plan for college and establish a sense of purpose for their high school work that will enable them to get to college. What programs/policies do you have in place to develop “college knowledge” as early as middle school? We know from the research literature that course taking patterns have a significant effect on baccalaureate access and attainment, particularly pre-Calculus and Calculus. Also, we know that English plays a significant role as well, particularly remedial English. What academic preparation programs do you have in place to provide math courses early in order for students to benefit from solid math preparation and increase their chances for access and success in postsecondary education? Also, given that English remediation is important for Latinas and Latinos, what type of English and English remediation programs do you offer? Overall, Latina and Latino students who are encouraged and supported by their families to go to college, create a plan as early as middle school, take at least three years of mathematics courses, and start at a four-year institution have a greater chance of accessing a baccalaureate granting institution and attaining a bachelor’s degree. What policies/programs do you have in place that create this college-going culture to ensure success at the critical points and, thereby, increased the likelihood that Latino students will go to and succeed in college? The A-G course requirement as an eligibility criterion for access to a UC is a critical measure and one that filters out many Latinas and Latinos in California. Do you offer all of the A-G requirements? If not, why not? If so, are your students successfully moving through these course offerings?