Early in a day, this September, a commotion was taking place outside the higher education campus library. In the hallways of the Columbus Learning Center, 180 young Latino high school students were all smiles and happily greeting their friends in English and Spanish. This was field trip day for the group. They came to the Indiana University-Purdue University Columbus (IUPUC) campus to attend a college and careers event called Éxito Latino.
Éxito Latino 2017 is a newly developed opportunity for Latino high school students from the Columbus and Seymour school districts who are considering their next step after graduating from high school. Éxito Latino was designed to answer questions about various career opportunities. The organizers invited young Latinos who already are out in careers and who graduated from the same high schools as the attending students to be facilitators for the event.
This event allowed our current Latino high school students at BCSC the opportunity to learn directly from current IUPUC Latino students and other Latino community leaders as they shared their stories about their journeys to achieve their dreams. It was truly an inspirational day that highlighted hope, the power of aspirations and the value of education to achieve those dreams, shared William Jenson, Director of Secondary Education at Bartholomew Consolidated School Corporation (BCSC).
A donor advisor to the Hispanic/Latino Scholarship Fund at the Heritage Fund, the Community Foundation of Bartholomew County, and IUPUC employee, Matt Souza, had this to say about the event:
Education has long been a major feature of Columbus, Indiana values. We have seen rapid growth in the high school graduation rates of Latino students. Therefore, it seemed like a good time to create and offer Éxito Latino. Our Career Session facilitators were mostly young Latinos who are in or have already graduated from college and are working in and around Columbus.
We had help from a vast and generous group of planners and sponsors. We are very pleased with the results of today’s event. We are looking forward to planning the next one.
Keynote - Greicy Patiño
Greicy Patiño is a recent graduate from the Division of Education at IUPUC. Born in Santa Ana, California and raised in Indiana, Greicy proudly honors the culture and traditions in which she grew up. Daughter of Mexican immigrants to the United States, Patiño unites both Spanish and English into her everyday life.
Her passion is working with elementary-aged children. She enjoys teaching in both languages with the hope of becoming an advocate for children. Patiño firmly believes that the value of education is the key component to positive change. Today, Patiño pursues her dreams working for BCSC.
CAREER PATH SESSIONS
Law, public safety, and law enforcement
Joseline Medina: IUPUC student who also works for BCSC
Michael Butler: Columbus Police Department
Business management
Shannon McDonald: IUPUC student who now works for Taylor Brothers
Luisa Chaparro: IUPUC student who now works Cummins, Inc.
Business finance
Jorge Garcia: IUPUC business finance graduate who now works at Cummins, Inc.
Business technology, computer engineering, and design
Edgar Hernandez: IUPUC student, who now works at Cummins, Inc.
Jose Loyo: Purdue Polytechnic student, who works at LHP
Nursing, medicine, and healthcare
Fabiola Ramos: Ivy Tech student in nursing
Morgan Shaver: IUPUC student in premedical (pre-med)
Government and social service
Aida Ramirez: Purdue graduate and director of the Columbus Human Rights Commission
Education careers
Greicy Patiño: IUPUC division of education graduate who now works for BCSC
Mechanical Engineering
Cesar Hernandez: IUPUC mechanical engineering graduate who now works at Cummins. Inc.
Miguel Aranda: Continuous improvement team leader at Cummins. Inc.
Undecided/ evolving career
Yamileth Martinez: Purdue Polytechnic student
Alejandro Rosales: CES account manager and GOAL president at Cummins, Inc.
Organizations that collaborated in the planning of Éxito Latino include BCSC, Columbus East High School, Columbus North High School, Columbus Signature Academy, Community Education Coalition, Cummins, the Heritage Fund, IUPUC, and the Seymour High School.
Participating higher educational institutions attending the Éxito Latino event included Butler University, Earlham College, Franklin College, IUPUC, Ivy Tech, IUPUI, Marian University, and Purdue Polytechnic.