September 22, 2005 == MEDIA ADVISORY
Aspirando Alto, a new conference from the Calvin College office of pre-college
programs, is aimed at building college aspirations in Latino students.
The conference will be held at Calvin Thursday, October 13 through Saturday,
October 15. It is being funded by a $10,000 grant from Bank One and a $500
grant from Mercantile Bank.
Leticia Espinoza, a 2003 Calvin graduate and the coordinator of Aspirando Alto
is excited about the new partnership.
"I think that the Latino population is very important and it has a growing
voice," Espinoza says. "The fact that Calvin is noticing and trying to serve
that part of the community is gratifying for me."
Aspirando Alto ((the name is Spanish for aspiring high) will bring 75 Latino
seventh through 10th-grades students from Central High and Burton Middle
schools and Potter's House Christian Middle and High schools to Calvin's
campus for a weekend full of activities.
The students, who must be nominated by their school counselors to participate
in the conference, will represent different levels of academic performance.
"We are intentionally seeking students who are serious about their academics,"
Rhae Ann Booker, director of pre-college programs for Calvin says, "as well as
students who may be at a crossroad, but who - with an intervention like
Aspirando Alto - may be pushed in a more positive direction academically."
The conference will include an address by keynote speaker Edith Michmerhuizen
about adapting to America as a Latino immigrant, chapel, workshops on topics
such as preparing for college and more.
Booker is hopeful that the upcoming conference will enable Calvin to build the
trusting relationships with the Latino community on which future programming
can be built.
For the complete story see
http://www.calvin.edu/news/releases/2005_06/aspirando_alto.htm
-end-
Received on Wed Sep 21 23:59:07 2005
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