Latina Youth Leadership Conference Background:
(Information gathered from Lambda Theta Nu Conference Manual.)
American schools are not meeting the educational needs of the fastest-growing female minority population-Latinas. A study by the American Association of University Women Educational Foundation, the nation's leading advocate for education and equity for women and girls, released a study showing the high school graduation for Latinas is lower than for girls in any other racial or ethnic group. The study concludes with recommendations and new approaches to ameliorate the issue including:
Statement of Need
The mission for the conference is to provide a safe, fun, and educational environment in which young Latina leaders can learn and grow. The conference will provide the time and opportunity necessary to promote young Latina leaders while engaging in discussion about issues affecting Latina women, as well as solutions that will empower the young women to succeed in the face of challenge.
Some Facts: (Information gathered from Lambda Theta Nu Community Service Manual)
Description of the Intervention
I wanted to concentrate on a project that focused on the Latino community. It was then brought to my attention that the sorority that I am affiliated with would begin hosting an annual Latina Leadership Conference and that every school that had Lambda Theta Nu on their campus would be hosting an individual conference. I saw this as a great opportunity to associate my senior project with this important event that my sorority would soon be hosting.
As soon as school started in the end of August 2001, I began the planning of the Latina Youth Leadership Conference. I sent letters of invitation to surrounding junior highs in the community. We chose to invite junior high students because we felt that it is an age group that can still be impacted by and taught some leadership skills. I contacted nine surrounding junior highs, but only six decided to participate in this event. The young women that belonged to ETS were also invited to attend the conference. I then began contacting possible speakers for the conference and decided that the most appropriate thing to do would be to ask the alumni women in my sorority that are members of the community that promote higher education. All nine women that I invited to speak at the conference as guest speakers accepted my offer and seemed delighted to do so. As a sorority we decided that we were going to use the funding that was allocated by ETS to pay for participant lunches. I also wanted to provide a conference t-shirt to the participants and to the speakers, but knew that it would be expensive. I asked a sorority sister to design a t-shirt and to get estimates on what it would cause to produce 120 t-shirts. The shirts were going to cost us $620, a very expensive price. I brainstormed a number of ideas for possible funding sources and finally settled on asking my aunt if her business would donate the t-shirts. She agreed to, and I was glad I had not given up on the idea.
The conference date finally came around and boy were we ready! We ended up having exactly 100 participants from the six different schools, which were: Marsh Junior High, Colusa Junior High, Bidwell Junior High, Chico Junior High, Egling Junior High and Williams Junior High. The workshop topics varied from leadership, and college preparation, to self-esteem. In the afternoon the women came together to listen to the panel speakers. At this point the participants were allowed to ask questions and learn about higher education.
Throughout the entire day I saw nothing but smiles on the faces of the participants. And I can honestly say that if this conference opened the doors of opportunity of education to at least one of the participants, I succeeded.
Evaluation of the Intervention
Definitely a breathtaking event! The Latina Youth Leadership Conference went really well considering the fact that it was the first year that Lambda Theta Nu Sorority, Inc. sponsored such an event. I saw many young women learn from this event, but above all this event opened the doors of opportunity to the Latina youth of the community. We hosted 100 Latinas and we hope that the numbers only grow larger. I believe that this conference was a success because the environment was just right. Participants had a positive attitude, the event was hosted in a college environment, and it was a learning experience for everyone.
Reflections on the Project
Overall I feel great about the turn out of the Latina Youth Leadership Conference. If I had to do something different I would have contacted and informed the local junior highs about the conference a lot earlier than I did. I would also like to have more guest speakers hosting workshops at the same time in order to broaden the selection. I am really glad that I was able to chair this event because not only did I promote higher education, I realized that I am a lucky woman to have broken the traditional Latino traditions that allowed me to be here today seeking a higher education.
References
Lambda Theta Nu Sorority, Inc.~ Community Service Manual
Interviews with: Michael Tokuno, Allan Bee, and David Ferguson
Educational Talent Search
CSU, Chico Admissions office
Educational Opportunity Program
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