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Celebrate Your
Heritage!
It is with mixed
emotions that I observe
Hispanic Heritage Month:
with admiration for my
adopted country’s
celebration of La
Hispanidad; with pride
in the culture and
traditions of my native
country of Mexico; with
respect for the
contributions that Spain
and Latin America have
made to the world of
science, literature,
music, dance and art;
but with sadness, too.
Let me explain.
Forty years ago, in
September 1968, Congress
authorized President
Lyndon B. Johnson to
proclaim National
Hispanic Heritage Week.
The President, a
graduate of Southwest
Texas State Teachers
College (now Texas State
University-San Marcos, a
member of the Hispanic
Association of Colleges
and Universities),
called upon the people
of the United States,
especially the
educational community,
to observe the week that
included September 15
and 16 “with appropriate
ceremonies and
activities.”
President Johnson was
surely familiar with the
ceremonies and
activities that
accompanied the
celebration of el diez y
seis de septiembre in
the Mexican community,
having served as a
principal of a Mexican-American
school in the south
Texas town of Cotulla,
where he also taught
fifth through seventh
grade. One can only
imagine the enthusiasm
with which the 20-year-old
teacher engaged his
students in reenacting
el grito that signaled
Mexican independence.
In
1988, Congress
authorized President
Ronald Reagan to
proclaim National
Hispanic Heritage Month,
beginning in 1989. Since
then, in an annual
celebration that lasts
from September 15 to
October 15, America has
celebrated “the culture
and traditions of those
who trace their roots to
Spain, Mexico and the
Spanish-speaking nations
of Central America,
South America and the
Caribbean,” according to
the U.S. Census Bureau.
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Dr. Antonio R.
Flores is the
president of the
Hispanic
Association of
Colleges and
Universities (HACU).
HACU is a
national
organization
that represents
450 colleges and
universities
that
collectively
serve two-thirds
of the two
million Hispanic
students in U.S.
higher education
across 37 states
and Puerto Rico. |
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September 15 was chosen
as the starting point
for the celebration
because it is the
anniversary of
independence of five
Latin American countries:
Costa Rica, El Salvador,
Guatemala, Honduras and
Nicaragua. In addition,
Mexico and Chile
celebrate their
independence days on
September 16 and 18,
respectively.
So
for such a festive
occasion, what’s there
to be sad about? Well,
when Lyndon Johnson
called especially upon
the educational
community to join the
celebration Hispanic
Heritage in 1968,
Hispanics were severely
underrepresented in the
very classrooms where
the celebrations were to
take place, especially
classrooms of higher
education.
Today, while gains have
been made, much work
remains. Even though
Hispanics are the
fastest-growing
population in K-12
classrooms nationwide,
we are still the least-educated
segment of society. What
I find most sad is that
we have a dropout rate
of more than 40 percent.
Of every 10 Latino
children who start
kindergarten, less than
six will finish high
school. Only one of
those 10 will finish
college.
But there is hope – hope
that springs from the
very core of our
Hispanic heritage – la
familia. Were it not for
my family, I would not
have made it past fifth
grade, the highest level
of education available
in the small farming
village of rural Mexico
where I was born and
raised. This isolated
community had no running
water, no electricity,
no telephone, no sewer
system, and no paved
roads. But my parents,
who had a second grade
education – the highest
level possible for their
generation – arranged
for me to journey down
one of our unpaved roads
to continue my education
in a neighboring town.
Since then, my journey
has led me to the halls
of prestigious
universities, the
presidency of the
Hispanic Association of
Colleges and
Universities (HACU), and
the very halls of
Congress where HACU and
our supporters advocate
on behalf of Hispanic
higher education, Latino
students and their
families.
In
1995, nearly three
decades after Congress
passed legislation to
officially observe
Hispanic Heritage,
Congressional
legislation allowed for
targeted funding of
Hispanic-Serving
Institutions (HSIs).
Since then, more than
one billion dollars have
been directed at raising
up HSIs, which now
number more than 260.
While HSIs represent
less than seven percent
of all colleges and
universities in the
nation, they enroll more
than half of the two
million Latinos in
higher education. Still,
they receive little more
than 50 cents for every
dollar in federal
funding per student
compared with non-HSIs.
In
the book Latino Change
Agents in Higher
Education: Shaping a
System that Works for
All, edited by Leonard
A. Valverde, the authors
cite the need for
revolutionary changes in
the practices of higher
education. They
christened their call
for a bold new plan un
grito fuerte (literally,
a strong shout), in
honor of Father Miguel
Hidalgo, the Catholic
priest from Dolores,
Mexico, who sounded the
bell for independence
from Spain on September
16, 1810.
With your advocacy,
sometime soon Hispanic
Heritage Month will be
celebrated in classrooms
throughout the country
with all our Latino
young people in
attendance. May we all
join them in a joyful
shout, with no tinge of
sadness, proclaiming
“¡Viva la educación!”
By
Dr. Antonio R. Flores |
