[BHS Etree] ADMIN: Hispanic Heritage Month (Sept. 15 - Oct. 15)

[BHS Etree]

PLEASE do not reply to this email, contact Jorge Melgoza,
jorgemelgoza at berkeley.net



Dear Parents and Guardians,



This is the time of year dedicated to bringing special attention to, and
celebration of, the accomplishments and contributions of our Spanish
Speaking Community to this country.



In 1968, Lyndon Johnson made the first "official" effort to recognize the
accomplishments of citizens whose ancestors hail from Spanish Speaking
countries.  The fact that September 15 is the beginning of this period of
celebration is significant because it is a day when Costa Rica, El
Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua celebrate their day of
independence. Mexico celebrates its day of independence on September 16,
and Chile on September 18.



Rather than devote this space to the numerous and well documented resources
highlighting the rich and robust contributions of the Chicano/Latino
community to this country from every walk of life and in every facet of our
society dating back to before the United States of America became the
U.S.A, I would prefer to draw attention to the contributions of some of our
own Chicano/Latino members at Berkeley High School who have contributed to
moving us beyond the simplification of our rich history and contributions
to heroes and holidays.



In collaboration with numerous members of the community dating to back to
the late 1980's, teachers, staff, students, and parents from Berkeley High
School were pivotal in creating the Chicano/Latino Studies Program at
Berkeley High School in 1993-1994. The program offered students the option
of taking classes in Chicano/Latino History, Chicano/Latino Literature,
Chicano/Latino Drama, Baile Folklorico, Chicano/Latino Freshmen
Orientation, Spanish for Native Speakers, Chicano/Latino Club, the
Chicano/Latino Graduation, and more importantly, a home away from home for
many of our students and staff.

In addition to graduating many students who are still playing key roles at
Berkeley High School as teachers and staff members, the Chicano/Latino
Studies Program was instrumental in stopping the practice of profiling and
harassing of our Chicano/Latino students by the school and the police
because of the clothing they wore.  Over the next few years it grew to
become the largest program of it's kind in the United States and supported
countless students and their parents.  Unfortunately, and due to a variety
of reasons, the program began its slow and steady decline and was in hiatus
for ten years, with the last remnants of the program being the
Chicano/Latino Graduation.



>From 1993-1994 to the present, numerous staff members, some currently on
site, were pivotal in keeping the program thriving in various forms.  The
classroom where the program began and became the second home for many of
our students was located on the second floor of the C Building.  Those who
entered the room were greeted with a mural, covering the entire west side
of the room, designed and painted by Miguel Perez, a BHS alum. Ironically,
that space has since been gutted and the empty space is now used to
highlight student artwork.



Last year, Rosa Guzman brought the Chicano/Latino Literature class back to
life, which was the cornerstone class of the program when it first began,
and through her efforts, has successfully taken this class to a new
level. As of this year, students can now fulfill their American Literature
requirement by taking Chicano/Latino Literature and the efforts to make
this happen is largely due to Rosa Guzman.  Additionally, last year, she
was successful in having Jimmy Santiago Baca speak to her students and
because of his positive experience with our students, has agreed to allow
us to showcase a film documenting his life later this year that will be
open to the public titled, A Place to Stand.  Feel free to click on the
link to learn more about his life. www.aplacetostandmovie.com
<http://t.sidekickopen18.com/e1t/c/5/f18dQhb0S7lC8dDMPbW2n0x6l2B9nMJW7t5XX463RDMYN1qwnWgf6BG8F2mWBprJqDdf5SZzJ203?si=4542843120517120&pi=549B4CC6-5D25-4236-98A1-2A0C3D9B5792&t=http%3A%2F%2Fwww%2Eaplacetostandmovie%2Ecom>
 and
we are also working to see if we can't convince him to return for a second
speaking engagement.  All proceeds will go to benefit the Chicano/Latino
Studies Program.



Additionally, Susi Lopez and Rosa Guzman have joined forces to create a new
group on campus called Chicano Latino United Voices.  The goal is, *to
create unity at Berkeley High School by creating an inclusive space where
students and staff can come together to learn about a new culture,
celebrate the voices of Chicano and Latino students and give back to our
community. Our hope is that our organization invites and inspires all
students from different backgrounds to bring awareness about their culture
to Berkeley High School.*



Some of the accomplishments of the new club include informing all students
about Hispanic Heritage Month at the Welcome Assembly, decorating a table
that celebrates Hispanic Heritage Month that is on display in the main
office, making announcements every Tuesday during Hispanic Heritage Month
that bring awareness about the Latino community, history and culture, AND
participating in this year's club fair to recruit members and successfully
received over 70 sign-ups! They meet every Monday in room H207 at 3:35pm.

*Chicano Latino United Voices* is sponsoring an event on September
29 during lunch in the upper courtyard. They seek to encourage all students
and staff to join them in making posters welcoming freshmen and sending the
message that Chicano Latinos United Voices will intervene on their behalf
whenever they witness acts of bullying or harassment and are seeking to
play a larger role in shaping the culture and climate on campus.



The efforts behind creating and building the Chicano/Latino studies program
has always been and will always be a team effort. It is therefore important
to recognize the past and current efforts of Regina Segura, Mercedes
Sanders, Maria Vargas, Julia Luna, Lupe Gallegos, Blas Guerrero, Octavio I
Romano, Salvador Murillo, Pablo Gonzalez, Victor Rios, Hugo Ramirez, Mario
Huerta, Father Crispin, Isabel Toscano, Lalo Duarte, Marcela Taylor,
Jessica Lopez, Heidi Ramirez-Weber, Adriana Beti, Patricia Stewart, Leticia
Amezcua, Janelle Bugarini, Rosa Guzman, Susi Lopez-Platt and countless
others for their many contributions, past and present, to the program. Let
us take this time to celebrate our own doing their share to promote the
greatness of the Chicano/Latino Community at Berkeley High School.  If you
would like to work with Susi or Rosa in their efforts to build a vibrant
program again and strengthen our community, please do not hesitate to reach
out to them as I am sure they would appreciate your support.



Respectfully,



Jorge Melgoza

Vice Principal
Berkeley High School



_____________________________

Marguerite Fa-Kaji, Catherine Ference and Dylan Kaufman are the
parent-volunteer facilitators of the Etree; please direct any questions
about the Etree to them at bhs-owner at lmi.net.



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