Nov 19, 2004 08:00 ET
20,000 Reached in Nationwide Bus Tour to Increase Number of Latinos Attending College
The Sallie Mae Fund Hosts Last of 125 Workshops, Community Events Nov. 19-20 in Miami
RESTON, Va., Nov. 19 /PRNewswire/ -- The Sallie Mae Fund's 23-city, coast- to-coast bus tour, On the Road: The Paying for College Tour, concludes this weekend in Miami with a series of events and workshops for Latino families.
(Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20041119/DCF002 )
The nationwide bus tour has helped educate more than 20,000 Latino students and parents on planning and paying for college through more than 125 workshops and community events. In Florida alone, nearly 2,000 people are expected to participate. Workshops attended by 150 students will be held this morning at Coral Park Senior High School in Miami.
"The Sallie Mae Fund has shown that knowledge of financial aid can mean the difference between attending college or writing it off as hopelessly out of reach," said Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-FL). "I challenge Hispanic families to capitalize on this financial aid because, as college graduates, Hispanics can play an increasingly important role in our country's future."
The Sallie Mae Fund also will host workshops at ASPIRA North tonight, and Maria Celeste Arraras, popular Telemundo news personality, will join the tour tomorrow afternoon at the Miami Beach Convention Center (details at http://www.salliemaefund.org/). The Fund also sponsored an "Idea Lab" this week to provide educators with a forum to discuss higher education access issues affecting minorities.
The bus tour, which began in Los Angeles on Sept. 8, was launched in the wake of the largest-ever survey of Latino perspectives on financial aid, which was commissioned by The Sallie Mae Fund and conducted by the Tomas Rivera Policy Institute at the University of Southern California. The survey results, announced in March, revealed that awareness of financial aid options is critically lacking in the Latino community, and that this lack of awareness is hampering college attendance. Half of all Latino young adults and more than half of all Latino parents did not receive any financial aid information in the K-12 years.
The survey showed that Latino families prefer to learn about financial aid from in-person meetings or workshops, provided by guidance counselors or financial aid experts. Financial aid experts, and more than 60 student- serving organizations, and Latino community-based groups nationwide partnered with The Sallie Mae Fund to bring financial aid information to Latino families how and where they want to receive it. The free Spanish-language workshops (with simultaneous English translation) are designed to help answer questions and provide information to Latino students and their parents. A college scholarship was awarded at every workshop, with a total of $60,000 in scholarships awarded to date.
"We knew from our research that thousands of Latino families were not receiving financial aid information in their desired format," said Susan Corsini, vice chair of The Sallie Mae Fund. "These families embraced The Fund's workshops and events -- a clear sign that this type of initiative can be tremendously powerful in helping more Latinos prepare for college."
"Many Latino young adults believe they can't go to college because college has not been part of their family history. If we can communicate a message of opportunity, college will become a source of pride for so many more Latino families," said Ruth Gammon-Stennett, associate director, ASPIRA North Miami.
Latinos represent the largest and most rapidly growing ethnic minority group in the state, making up nearly 17 percent of the Florida population. By the year 2014, more than one out of every three public high school graduates in Florida will be of Latino descent, according to projections by the Western Interstate Commission on Higher Education.
The Sallie Mae Fund, a charitable organization sponsored by Sallie Mae, achieves its mission -- to increase access to a postsecondary education for America's students -- by supporting programs and initiatives that help open doors to higher education, prepare families for their investment, and bridge the gap when no one else can. For more information visit http://www.salliemaefund.org/.
Photo: NewsCom: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20041119/DCF002
AP PhotoExpress Network: PRN2
PRN Photo Desk, photodesk@prnewswire.com
Source: The Sallie Mae Fund
CONTACT: Hugh Rosen of The Sallie Mae Fund, +1-703-984-6227, or
hugh.rosen@thesalliemaefund.org
Web site: http://www.thesalliemaefund.org/
Friday, November 19, 2004
Saturday, November 13, 2004
Featured Site (www.elboricua.com)
Next week all my English students from grades 4 to 9 will get school assignments related to Puerto Rico, where they will use their bilingual abilities. I am using a wonderful tool: www.elboricua.com, a bilingual cultural site for Puerto Ricans.
The site offers wonderful resources, ranging from Puerto Rico-related lesson plans for teachers to food recipes and interesting articles.
Visit the elboricua site. I recommend you stop in.
November 19 marks "El Dia de Descubrimiento" de Puerto Rico (Discovery Day), a local holiday here on the island. Puerto Rico was "discovered" November 19, 1493, by Christopher Columbus on his second voyage to the Americas.
Next week all my English students from grades 4 to 9 will get school assignments related to Puerto Rico, where they will use their bilingual abilities. I am using a wonderful tool: www.elboricua.com, a bilingual cultural site for Puerto Ricans.
The site offers wonderful resources, ranging from Puerto Rico-related lesson plans for teachers to food recipes and interesting articles.
Visit the elboricua site. I recommend you stop in.
November 19 marks "El Dia de Descubrimiento" de Puerto Rico (Discovery Day), a local holiday here on the island. Puerto Rico was "discovered" November 19, 1493, by Christopher Columbus on his second voyage to the Americas.
Community News
Did you know that stateside Puerto Ricans (3.9 million) outnumber those in Puerto Rico (3.6 million) for the first time in history? That's according to a new study. Read about it.
ATLAS OF STATESIDE PUERTO RICANS
by Angelo Falcón
(Washington, DC: Puerto Rico Federal Affairs Administration), 130 pp.
To download an abridged version of the report without the state and local maps, visit this link:
https://secure.logmein.com/f?TG..q0OSiXC1GztrucCV4hC8yVp6SwYGFdvwXJQ3YRE
To get a free hard copy of the full 130-page report mailed to you, order from PRFAA:
Celeste Diaz Ferraro at 202-271-7263 (cdiaz@prfaa.com) or Maite Rivera at 202-271-7272
Highlights of the Findings:
Stateside Puerto Ricans (3.9 million) outnumber those in Puerto Rico (3.6 million) for the first time in history
Stateside Puerto Ricans send an estimated $1 billion a year in remittances to their families and relatives in Puerto Rico
The aggregate income of Stateside Puerto Ricans ($55 billion) exceeds that of Puerto Rico ($43 billion)
The concentration of Puerto Rican communities stateside are presented in 12 states and the District of Columbia at the state and metropolitan levels in more than 90 maps.
In 2002, the average individual income for Stateside Puerto Ricans was $33,927, compared to $48,687 for non-Latino Whites
63 percent of Stateside Puerto Ricans ages 25 and over graduated from high school, compared to 84 percent of non-Latino Whites.
Stateside Puerto Ricans have a family poverty rate of 23 percent, compared to 6 percent for non-Latino Whites and 45 percent for Puerto Rico.
The poverty rates for single female-headed families were 39 percent for Stateside Puerto Ricans, 20 percent for non-Latino Whites, and 61 percent in for Puerto Rico.
21 percent of Stateside Puerto Ricans are in professional-managerial occupations, compared to 36 percent of non-Latino Whites.
Stateside Puerto Rican women have the closest of any racial-ethnic minority of income parity to the men of their own group: their income was 84 percent that of Stateside Puerto Rican men.
The implications of this study for Puerto Rico and Stateside Puerto Ricans are outlined as well in this report.
About the Author:
Angelo Falcón, a political scientist, is the Senior Policy Executive of the Puerto Rican Legal Defense and Education Fund, where he directs the PRLDEF Institute for Puerto Rican Policy. He is also an Adjunct Associate Professor at the Columbia University School of Public and International Affairs. He is also co-editor of the recently-released book, Boricuas in Gotham: Puerto Ricans in the Making of Modern New York City (Princeton: Marcus Weiner Publihers, 2004). The Atlas of Stateside Puerto Ricans was commissioned by the Puerto Rico Federal Affairs Administration and is released jointly with PRLDEF.
To arrange an interview with the author, contact Myra Estepa at the PRLDEF Institute for Puerto Rican Policy at 212-739-7499 or mestepa@aol.com.
Myra Y. Estepa
Policy Networking Program Coordinator
PRLDEF, Inc.
99 Hudson Street, 14th Floor
New York, NY 10013
(212) 739-7499 (Direct)
(212) 431-4276 (Fax)
"Querer ser libre es empezar a serlo"
Did you know that stateside Puerto Ricans (3.9 million) outnumber those in Puerto Rico (3.6 million) for the first time in history? That's according to a new study. Read about it.
ATLAS OF STATESIDE PUERTO RICANS
by Angelo Falcón
(Washington, DC: Puerto Rico Federal Affairs Administration), 130 pp.
To download an abridged version of the report without the state and local maps, visit this link:
https://secure.logmein.com/f?TG..q0OSiXC1GztrucCV4hC8yVp6SwYGFdvwXJQ3YRE
To get a free hard copy of the full 130-page report mailed to you, order from PRFAA:
Celeste Diaz Ferraro at 202-271-7263 (cdiaz@prfaa.com) or Maite Rivera at 202-271-7272
Highlights of the Findings:
Stateside Puerto Ricans (3.9 million) outnumber those in Puerto Rico (3.6 million) for the first time in history
Stateside Puerto Ricans send an estimated $1 billion a year in remittances to their families and relatives in Puerto Rico
The aggregate income of Stateside Puerto Ricans ($55 billion) exceeds that of Puerto Rico ($43 billion)
The concentration of Puerto Rican communities stateside are presented in 12 states and the District of Columbia at the state and metropolitan levels in more than 90 maps.
In 2002, the average individual income for Stateside Puerto Ricans was $33,927, compared to $48,687 for non-Latino Whites
63 percent of Stateside Puerto Ricans ages 25 and over graduated from high school, compared to 84 percent of non-Latino Whites.
Stateside Puerto Ricans have a family poverty rate of 23 percent, compared to 6 percent for non-Latino Whites and 45 percent for Puerto Rico.
The poverty rates for single female-headed families were 39 percent for Stateside Puerto Ricans, 20 percent for non-Latino Whites, and 61 percent in for Puerto Rico.
21 percent of Stateside Puerto Ricans are in professional-managerial occupations, compared to 36 percent of non-Latino Whites.
Stateside Puerto Rican women have the closest of any racial-ethnic minority of income parity to the men of their own group: their income was 84 percent that of Stateside Puerto Rican men.
The implications of this study for Puerto Rico and Stateside Puerto Ricans are outlined as well in this report.
About the Author:
Angelo Falcón, a political scientist, is the Senior Policy Executive of the Puerto Rican Legal Defense and Education Fund, where he directs the PRLDEF Institute for Puerto Rican Policy. He is also an Adjunct Associate Professor at the Columbia University School of Public and International Affairs. He is also co-editor of the recently-released book, Boricuas in Gotham: Puerto Ricans in the Making of Modern New York City (Princeton: Marcus Weiner Publihers, 2004). The Atlas of Stateside Puerto Ricans was commissioned by the Puerto Rico Federal Affairs Administration and is released jointly with PRLDEF.
To arrange an interview with the author, contact Myra Estepa at the PRLDEF Institute for Puerto Rican Policy at 212-739-7499 or mestepa@aol.com.
Myra Y. Estepa
Policy Networking Program Coordinator
PRLDEF, Inc.
99 Hudson Street, 14th Floor
New York, NY 10013
(212) 739-7499 (Direct)
(212) 431-4276 (Fax)
"Querer ser libre es empezar a serlo"
Thursday, November 11, 2004
Sunset at Zandvoort Beach
Among the beautiful sun shots in the Sunrise, Sunset -- Anything Sun photo group at flickr.
Photo by "uruandimi"
Photo by "uruandimi"
Monday, November 08, 2004
"Old San Juan in Silhouettes"
An excerpt from an article posted at the photosofpuertoricosun site. On images from Old San Juan and more, photosofpuertorico wrote: "Clarisel carefully 'painted' them just with pure shadows and silhouettes, producing very compelling images from ordinary objects."
Stop in and enjoy the photo gallery at www.photosofpuertorico.com.
Site has a wonderful array of photos of La Isla del Encanto from a talented pool of photographers. Definitely worth a visit.
Clarisel
An excerpt from an article posted at the photosofpuertoricosun site. On images from Old San Juan and more, photosofpuertorico wrote: "Clarisel carefully 'painted' them just with pure shadows and silhouettes, producing very compelling images from ordinary objects."
Stop in and enjoy the photo gallery at www.photosofpuertorico.com.
Site has a wonderful array of photos of La Isla del Encanto from a talented pool of photographers. Definitely worth a visit.
Clarisel
Saturday, November 06, 2004
Caminito in La Boca
Check out the latinoamericanos! photo group at flickr. Beautiful images from different Spanish-speaking countries.
This photo is by lujan. It is a "caminito" in Argentina.
This photo is by lujan. It is a "caminito" in Argentina.
Culture & Identity
Commentary
By Clarisel Gonzalez
Puerto Rico Sun
SAN JUAN - I was told yesterday that I am not Puerto Rican.
Neither is Jennifer Lopez or Marc Anthony I was told.
Why?
Well, I was told by a "real Puerto Rican" that none of us are Puerto Rican because we were not born on the island.
I was offended.
This "Puerto Rican sister" told me that Jennifer Lopez, Marc Anthony and no other person born in New York or anywhere in the states is a "real Puerto Rican." "You just see yourselves that way," she said. It was not the first time I heard comments like that about Nuyoricans, but it was the first time that someone told me that to my face.
I heard this coming from the mouth of what I perceived to be a boricua sister who doesn't see me as boricua. I don't see her as a sister anymore even if she was born on La Isla del Encanto and sees herself as a "real Puerto Rican."
Whatever.
I have been living on the island on and off since 2000, but I have identified as Puerto Rican all my life. My mother and father moved to New York City in search of better opportunities just like many Puerto Ricans did. They had me in New York, and I grew in the South Bronx. But they instilled in me a deep love for the island.
And, I grew up bilingual, bicultural.
As a journalist, a large part of my mission has been striving for better and fairer coverage of Latino issues and more opportunities for journalists. That is why I am now running this Puerto Rico Sun cultural blog.
As a teacher, I have served Hispanic students in Trenton, N.J., and on the island.
I currently work as an English teacher in Santurce's Barrio Obrero, and my students are Puerto Rican and Dominican. I see it as a way of giving back to mi gente.
Now, I am told I am not even a "real Puerto Rican."
I disagree.
I am a proud Puerto Rican. I am American. I am a New Yorker.
I know who I am, and I am giving back to mi gente.
Or, should I just go home to New York (where I belong) to do that?
Commentary
By Clarisel Gonzalez
Puerto Rico Sun
SAN JUAN - I was told yesterday that I am not Puerto Rican.
Neither is Jennifer Lopez or Marc Anthony I was told.
Why?
Well, I was told by a "real Puerto Rican" that none of us are Puerto Rican because we were not born on the island.
I was offended.
This "Puerto Rican sister" told me that Jennifer Lopez, Marc Anthony and no other person born in New York or anywhere in the states is a "real Puerto Rican." "You just see yourselves that way," she said. It was not the first time I heard comments like that about Nuyoricans, but it was the first time that someone told me that to my face.
I heard this coming from the mouth of what I perceived to be a boricua sister who doesn't see me as boricua. I don't see her as a sister anymore even if she was born on La Isla del Encanto and sees herself as a "real Puerto Rican."
Whatever.
I have been living on the island on and off since 2000, but I have identified as Puerto Rican all my life. My mother and father moved to New York City in search of better opportunities just like many Puerto Ricans did. They had me in New York, and I grew in the South Bronx. But they instilled in me a deep love for the island.
And, I grew up bilingual, bicultural.
As a journalist, a large part of my mission has been striving for better and fairer coverage of Latino issues and more opportunities for journalists. That is why I am now running this Puerto Rico Sun cultural blog.
As a teacher, I have served Hispanic students in Trenton, N.J., and on the island.
I currently work as an English teacher in Santurce's Barrio Obrero, and my students are Puerto Rican and Dominican. I see it as a way of giving back to mi gente.
Now, I am told I am not even a "real Puerto Rican."
I disagree.
I am a proud Puerto Rican. I am American. I am a New Yorker.
I know who I am, and I am giving back to mi gente.
Or, should I just go home to New York (where I belong) to do that?
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