Supporting undocumented young people in their pursuit of college, career and citizenship
2013 EDUCATOR CONFERENCE — JANUARY 19, 2013
Keynote Address: Catherine Eusebio, Ingrid Hernandez, New Latthi, Steve Li, Gabriela Monico, Julio Navarrete, Nadia Rojas, and Irving Pineda (E4FC Creative Writing Program)
Welcome to the conference page for the 2013 E4FC Educator Conference! On January 19th, we were excited to welcome over 500 teachers, counselors, school administrators, community leaders and allies from over 250 different schools/organizations and nine different states for a day of information, networking and inspiration.In 2012, we witnessed monumental changes for undocumented youth. With the implementation of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) and the California Dream Act, undocumented students in California have access to more resources and opportunities than ever before. The challenge now for educators and allies is to help undocumented students access these new resources and advocate for further reform.This will be the central location for workshop materials, major annoucements and videos from the event. Conference materials will be published as we get them, so please check back often for updates. - E4FC Staff & Conference Planning Committee
Conference Schedule:
REGISTRATION – First Floor (Wheeler Hall) 8:00-9:00
OPENING SESSION — Wheeler Auditorium 9:00-10:25
Welcome: Jose Ivan Arreola (E4FC Outreach Manager) and Katharine Gin (E4FC Executive Director)
Keynote Address Catherine Eusebio, Ingrid Hernandez, New Latthi, Steve Li, Gabriela Monico, Julio Navarrete, Nadia Rojas, and Irving Pineda (E4FC Creative Writing Program)
Introductionto Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) Krsna N. Avila (E4FC Legal Service Manager) and Marilia Zellner (E4FC Legal Service Supervisor)
Introduction to California Dream Act Bryan Dickason (Manager, Program Administration and Services Division, California Student Aid Commission)
WORKSHOPS– SESSION 1 10:35-11:30
WORKSHOPS— SESSION 2 11:40-12:35
LUNCH – 12:35-1:05
SPECIAL PANEL DISCUSSION – Wheeler Auditorium 1:05-1:45
Jose Antonio Vargas, in conversation with his "Underground Railroad"
WORKSHOPS — SESSION 3 1:55-2:50
WORKSHOPS – SESSION 4 3:00-3:55
CLOSING ADDRESS – Wheeler Auditorium 4:10-4:30
"Why Immigration Reform Cannot Happen Without You" — Bill Ong Hing, Professor of Law, University of San Francisco
DESSERT RECEPTION – 4:30-5:30
Workshops
Asian Pacific Islander Spotlight: Emerging Voices Often unseen in the greater media, Asian Pacific Islander (API) youth with “no papers” end up in the shadows because of the stigma associated with being undocumented within the API community. This workshop is designed to discuss and share stories about the struggles and hardships API students without legal status go through in everyday life.
Mandeep Chahal – E4FC Outreach Ambassador
Putri Siti Dyannie –E4FC Outreach Ambassador & ASPIRE Member
Dean Santos - E4FC Outreach Ambassador & ASPIRE Member
Bo Seo - Outreach/Activism, ASPIRE
Beyond Deferred Action: Immigration Law, Policies & Benefits for Undocumented Students 25% of undocumented students who have gone through E4FC's Legal Services have been found to have an immigration remedy that could lead to a permanent lawful status. In this presentation, we will provide an overview of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) and other immigration law/policies, to help educators understand what options might be available to students. E4FC's immigration attorney will also answer questions about how educators and allies can best support students in pursuing these remedies.
Cholo, Sin Papeles, "Fina" Drop Out: Engaging Those Falling Through the Cracks Cesar A. Cruz, co-founder of Homies Empowerment and 17-year educator, will present a workshop about how to engage "disengaged" Raza students by connecting to their history through a gangster lens. This workshop is geared towards educators working with gang impacted/involved youth, who are also undocumented and do not connect with school at all.
Cesar A. Cruz - Co-Founder, Homies Empowerment & Dean of Students, Arise High School (Oakland)
Graduate School for Undocumented Students This workshop will provide insight on the application process for graduate school for AB 540 students as well as ways to finance it. In addition, information will be provided on how a student can become involved on and off campus as a way to advocate for AB 540 students. This workshop will provide a panel of current graduate students as well as a presentation with key points.
Francisco Alvarado — Graduate Student, GRADD Northern California
Blanca Hernandez — Graduate Student, GRADD Northern California
Ju Hong — Graduate Student, GRADD Northern California
Angel Ku — Pre-Health Dreamers
New Latthi — Graduate Student, Pre-Health Dreamers
Denisse Rojas — Pre-Health Dreamers
Nadia Rojas — Graduate Student, GRADD Northern California
Nalleli Sandoval — Graduate Student, GRADD Northern California
How to Be an Effective Ally: Creating a Culture of Support in Your High School Community In this workshop, we'll look at the development of Sequoia High School's Dream Club and its work as part of the community-based Immigrant Youth Action Team. We'll examine what can be done in a high school and in its surrounding community to create a safe and supportive space for undocumented students.
Hannah Blumen-Green — Student, Sequoia High School
Lilly Campos - Immigrant youth consultant, Center for Youth, Redwood City 2020
Sheryl Muñoz-Bergman - Director of Programs, International Institute of the Bay Area
Rossmeri Ramirez — Student, Sequoia High School
Jane Slater — Teacher, Dream Club Adviser, Sequoia High School
Immigration & Social Justice: Reflections on Personal Experience, History & Politics This presentation will touch on aspects of the speaker’s personal experience as an undocumented immigrant with respect to the historical, political, and economic issues associated with migration, legality & citizenship in the United States.
Jose Ivan Arreola – E4FC Outreach Manager
Institutional Allies: Mobilizing Support Within Educational Institutions This workshop will provide an overview of three diverse AB540 Task Force models. Presenters will share their successes and challenges, and provide a starting framework for those interested in creating an AB540 Task Force.
Amy H. Lee, Ed.D. - Director, TRiO Student Support Services, Laney College
Romeo O. Garcia - Director, Student Support & TRiO Program, Cañada College
Leticia Silva - Counselor, Latino Services Network; Advisor for SAFE (Students Advocating for Equity) & for VIDA (Voices for Immigrants Demonstrating Achievement), City College San Francisco
Light in the Shadows: Emotional, Mental & Spiritual Health of Undocumented Youth This presentation will provide a framework for beginning to understand the emotional, mental and spiritual experience of undocumented youth. The presentation will provide examples of common psychological, emotional and physical challenges. In addition, recommendations will be provided for how to support and guide undocumented youth in order to manage hardships, increase a sense of agency and begin the healing process.
Jose Ivan Arreola – E4FC Outreach Manager
Paying for College This workshop will begin with an overview of the various ways undocumented students are paying for college such as work, grants, loans, installment plans, and fee waivers. We will then discuss the top things educators need to know and do to help students who are applying for scholarships.
Yoland Venegas — English Instructor and Graduate Student, SFSU MA, Composition Program
Roadmaps to Ensuring Successful Enrollment at CA Public Colleges This workshop will identify important roadblocks that can prevent AB 540 students from successfully enrolling in classes at California public colleges and universities. Educators will gain a clearer understanding of the differences in program eligibility among California systems and how to get answers to pressing questions.
Nancy Jodaitis – Office of Student Financial Aid & Transfer Articulation Bridge Program; Advisor to IDEAS, San Francisco State University
Leticia Silva - Counselor, Latino Services Network; Advisor for SAFE (Students Advocating for Equity) & for VIDA (Voices for Immigrants Demonstrating Achievement), City College San Francisco
Storytelling for Healing & Advocacy Hear undocumented students share their creative writing stories, talk about how their stories came into being, and engage in a Q&A session with the student writers. Learn some tips about how to support undocumented students in sharing their stories creatively.
Julio Navarrete — E4FC Creative Writing Coordinator
Successfully Submitting the CA Dream Application This workshop will provide educators with the tools they need to help students accurately fill out and successfully submit the CA Dream Application. An overview will be provided for the application at all three tiers of CA public universities. Representatives from UCs, CSUs, CCCs and CSAC will be available to answer specific questions.
Bryan Dickason — Manager, Program Administration and Services Division, California Student Aid Commission
Rachel Feldman — Director of Financial Aid Office, UC Berkeley
Nancy Jodaitis – Office of Student Financial Aid & Transfer Articulation Bridge Program; Advisor to IDEAS, San Francisco State University
Rhonda Mohr — Specialist, Student Financial Aid, California Community Colleges Chancellor's Office
UC Berkeley: A National Model of Support for Building Institutional Change Learn how UC Berkeley has granted significant scholarship funding, and has created a national model for supporting undocumented students. Efforts include academic counseling, legal aid, financial aid, a DREAMers Resource Center, and a community of mutual support. Panel topics include strategizing for resource development, building institutional allies/champions, and how these factors coalesced to develop critical support systems for students.
Ruben Canedo — Research & Mobilization Coordinator, UC Berkeley
Elise Haas — DREAMer Advocate, UC Berkeley
Fabrizio Mejia - Director of the Educational Opportunity Program, UC Berkeley
Meng So - Undocumented Student Program Coordinator, UC Berkeley
UndocuQueer: ...Because We Do Not Live Single-Issue Lives As expressed by Audre Lorde, “There is no thing as a single-issue struggle because we do not live single-issue lives.” This workshop aims to create visibility. It intends to address the multiple identities and intersections present in the everyday life of queer undocumented immigrant communities. By carrying out an identity activity, sharing our stories and our political work, we shed light on the significance of UndocuQueer activism and its role in learning to understand that everyone has complex, multi-faceted identities.
Ana Cancino — B.A. Latin American Literatures, UC Berkeley
Marco Antonio Flores — Judith Lee Stronach, Visiting Scholar, Department of Gender & Women's Studies, UC Berkeley
Mario Lio – E4FC Student Support Coordinator
Youth Organizations, Non-Profits & the College Access Space: Basic Practices in Serving Undocumented Youth While school continues to be the main point of engagement for most youth, after-school and “outside of school” have emerged as important spaces of support for youth, including undocumented students. How can your organization continue its work and at the same time begin to better support undocumented youth? Regardless of the specific focus and mission of an organization (whether it be youth development, college access, arts education or financial literacy, etc.), you will learn some concrete steps you can immediately take to better support the undocumented youth in your program.
Miguel N. Abad — College Track & E4FC Educator Action Group
Gladys Cortez – Student, College of Marin
Sara Lipton-Carey – MSW, E4FC Educator Action Group
Darwin Velasquez – Senior, George Washington High School
Conference Highlights
JOSE ANTONIO VARGAS IN CONVERSATION WITH HIS UNDERGROUND RAILROAD
Jose Antonio Vargas, journalist/filmmaker and founder of Define American, leads a panel discussion with his former educators from Mountain View High School: Rich Fischer (Pivot Learning Partners), Pat Hyland (Foothill College), and Susan Sweeley (MVLA High School District).
ABOUT JOSE ANTONIO VARGAS
Jose Antonio Vargas, a multimedia storyteller, is the founder of Define American, a campaign that seeks to elevate the conversation around immigration. He’s written for daily newspapers (Philadelphia Daily News, San Francisco Chronicle) and national magazines (The Atlantic, Rolling Stone) and was a senior contributing editor at the Huffington Post. At the Washington Post, he was part of the team that won a Pulitzer Prize for covering the Virginia Tech massacre, and his 2006 series on HIV/AIDS in Washington, D.C. inspired a feature-length documentary — The Other City — which he co-produced and wrote. It world premiered at the 2010 Tribeca Film Festival and aired on Showtime. In 2010, he wrote an exclusive profile of Facebook founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg for the New Yorker. In June 2011, the New York Times Magazine published a groundbreaking essay he wrote in which he revealed and chronicled his life in America as an undocumented immigrant, stunning media and political circles and attracting worldwide coverage. A year later, he appeared on the cover of TIME magazine internationally with fellow undocumented immigrants as part of a follow-up cover story. He has appeared on several national and international television and radio programs, including Nightline, The O’Reilly Factor, and The Colbert Report. Jose currently resides in Manhattan.
"WHY IMMIGRATION REFORM CANNOT HAPPEN WITHOUT YOU"
Bill Ong Hing discusses the various players working on immigration reform at this very moment at the White House, the Senate, and the House, and the contents of what they are contemplating. Then, he will explore a series of questions: Given the political challenges over the budget and gun control, what are the chances the immigration reform will be pushed off the table? More than two months after the November elections, do the Republicans still view immigration reform as a priority? Is piecemeal reform the better strategy? What role can you — DREAMers and their allies — play in this battle?
ABOUT BILL ONG HING
Bill Ong Hing is General Counsel and Board Member of the Immigrant Legal Resource Center, which he founded in 1979 and served as its volunteer Executive Director for its first two decades. A Professor at the University San Francisco, School of Law, he is the author of Ethical Borders--NAFTA, Globalization, and Mexican Migration; Deporting Our Souls--Values, Morality, and Immigration Policy; Defining America Through Immigration Policy; Handling Immigration Cases; Making and Remaking Asian America Through Immigration Policy; To Be An American; and co-author of numerous ILRC publications. He has extensive experience in working with immigrants of varied nationalities and is a nationally recognized expert in immigration and naturalization law. Bill volunteers on several Boards, including the Southeast Asian Refugee Action Center and the ILRC. He is the president of the San Francisco Immigrant Rights Commission.
