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Latino
Poet and Author Jimmy Santiago Baca Coming to
Skyline on Cinco de
Mayo!!
Last
semester, Puente students attended the annual
Puente Motivational Conference at UC Davis and we
had the treat of hearing Jimmy Santiago Baca
speak. As a result, we began the semester by
reading his memoir A Place to Stand. The
students really responded to Baca's story of
overcoming extreme struggle. He was abandoned by
his parents at a very young age, placed in an
orphanage, and then later incarcerated at the age
of 21 for drug possession. During his six years in
prison, he taught himself to read and write and
later went on to become an award winning writer and
poet. Baca now conducts writing workshops with
children and adults at countless elementary, junior
high and high schools, colleges, universities,
reservations, barrio community centers, white
ghettos, housing projects, correctional facilities
and prisons from coast to coast. Inspired by this
man, Juan Nevarez, a student completing his
second semester in the Puente Program, researched
and found Baca's email address and struck up a
correspondence with him. Through Juan's efforts, he
persuaded Baca to fly from his home in New Mexico
to come to speak to Skyline students. With the
support of Skyline's Associated Students (ASSC) and
the Puente Program, Juan secured the funding to
bring Baca here and all are invited to his forum
"Life Lessons" in Skyline's Main Theatre on
Monday, May 5th at 6pm. Students, don't miss
out! And teachers, please consider offering extra
credit to your students to encourage them to take
advantage of this opportunity!
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Puente
Student Success Story:
A student
who completed the Puente Program in Spring 2001
under the instruction of Jim Bowsher, Berta Rosa
Guillen was awarded the Karl S. Pister
Scholarship Award, and as a result has a nearly
full ride to UC Santa Cruz in the Fall! Berta said:
"From the Puente Program I received the motivation
to pursue writing, and I also received the personal
attention that I thought I would never find in
college." She went on to say: "The best thing about
earning this scholarship is that I feel that in
essence everyone who knows me benefits from it. My
family feels proud, my little sisters feel anxious
to do the same, and friends of mine realize that
there is hope. I feel like I am mejorando
(bettering) la raza by getting the scholarship. The
people at Santa Cruz will probably never know the
ripple effect this award will make in my life and
in the life of my family." As far as Berta's future
plans she tells us: "I am majoring in sociology
with the intention of becoming a community college
professor. I feel that Skyline has given me more
than I could ever repay and the best I can do is to
continue teaching and hopefully find students like
myself that need a little push." Good luck
Berta--the Skyline and Puente familia are behind
you and are very proud of your success!
Saying
Good-bye to Puente:
After
teaching the Puente English classes for the past 2
years, I am passing on this enriching teaching
opportunity to Karen Wong who will begin in Fall
2003 with Imelda Hermosillo continuing as Puente
Counselor (Fall Puente: Engl 846 MWF 10:10-11:35am,
CRN #89258). I have really enjoyed being a part of
this program and have really loved becoming close
with the students through the additional field
trips and activities that just don't exist with
teaching standard English classes. I'll truly miss
it!.....................................--Rachel
Bell
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