Herrera was reflecting upon the day-long Latino Seminar, From the Fields to the Future, held on March 27, attended by more than 40 teachers from the Merced Union High School District. Supported by funding from UCSC's Educational Partnership Center, the Institute aims to increase the number of Merced students prepared to go to college, mindful that the University of California, Merced, is due to open in 2004. The Institute is also committed to teaching analytical reading and writing in all subjects and to using technology to develop students' research skills and to make whatever any teacher or student learns readily available to others. Keynote speaker Dr. Richard Luevano, Department of Ethnic Studies, CSU Stanislaus, gave a moving presentation on the proud history of Mexican Americans and made the point that the vast majority of Mexican American students now in school are only second generation.
Poverty creates a lack of exposure.
And he urged teachers to teach students these languages so they can succeed. He explained that most Latino parents especially those who grew up in Mexico respect teachers highly and trust that teachers know what's best for their children. So in parent-teacher conferences, some Latino parents may ask only about a child's behavior, and not about educational achievement. Under the guidance of Juan Felipe Herrera and inspired by the political improvisations of Luis Valdez El Teatro Campesino, the students scenes were based upon their own lives growing up in the Valley. They depicted conflicts over where and how to gain acceptance, struggles and connections with teachers and with peers, and ways they responded to perceived injustices.