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|  Enter College At Record RateOutpace American Whites and Blacks  | | Jackeline Lizama (front) plans to attend a local community college after she graduates next month from her high school in Silver Spring, Md. - Hansi Lo Wang/NPR |
If the headline caught your eye, here's more good news. Seven in 10 Latino high school graduates in the class of 2012 went to college, according to a recent report by the Pew Hispanic Center. That's a record-high college enrollment rate for Latinos, and it's the first time Latinos have surpassed white and black students, even as they lag behind Asian-Americans. The Latino high school dropout rate has fallen by half over the past decade - from 28 percent in 2000 to 14 percent in 2011. The Pew report did not get into exactly why more Latino students are enrolling in college. But its co-authors, Richard Fry and Paul Taylor, note that the recession may have spurred more young Latinos to stay in school and delay entering the job market. A more compelling theory may be a generational shift within the Latino population, says Marcelo Suarez-Orozco, dean of UCLA's Graduate School of Education and Information Studies. Suarez-Orozco, who studies immigration and education issues, sees the increase of Latinos entering college as part of a natural cycle of the American immigration story. "I think the story here is really the story of the maturing of the second generation," he says. "These are U.S.-born kids, and these are kids who have higher ambitions. They want to do better than their parents. And they're connecting with colleges." ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The Black Star Project sends our congratulations to our Latino Brothers and Latina sisters! Great Job!!! |
| Sliding Into Homelessness I did everything right, but had nowhere to go
 ZAKKIAYA BOWEN Spring Issue 2013 I am 21 years old and a full-time student at LaGuardia Community College, working toward a degree in writing and literature. I am a writer for Represent magazine and I work as a research analyst for an international company. I sound like I've got it all figured it out, right? Well, I kind of do, but I'm still homeless. Here's how it happened. As I neared my 21st birthday, I was living in a group home, starting college, and didn't have a job. So my two best post-foster-care housing options were the New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA) and New York/New York III. Three months before my 21st birthday, I applied to NYCHA but they closed my case because I didn't have a job and I couldn't pay my share of the rent. I was supposed to be receiving Social Security Supplemental Security Income (SSI) because I have a condition called short bowel syndrome that requires me to go to the hospital fairly often. But when I turned 21, a spot hadn't opened up with NY/NYIII. So my agency sent me to live with my mother even though I did not belong at my mother's house. I hadn't lived with my mom since I was 15 and she'd put me in foster care when I was 17. I planned to save up from my salary for the security deposit and first month's rent, but my mother harassed me for the $152 cable bill, even though I was never in the house and only watched television for about four hours during the month. She constantly asked me when I got paid, and how much I got paid, and it made me upset. Finally, she kicked me out, and I went to my brother's house. He'd just been fired, though, so I only stayed with him for two nights. I then moved in with a friend of mine. Her mother wanted me to pay her $200 a month, but when it came time, I didn't have that much after paying for my MetroCard, food, and other necessary items. I went back to my mom's, but then she said I could only sleep there on weekdays. On weekends, I had to find somewhere else to sleep. So that first weekend, I decided to sleep on the subway, riding several train lines from end to end. I had to work that weekend, so I tried to figure out where I could take a shower. . |
Chicago Region PTA Presents The Value of PTA Spring Leadership Day Saturday May 18, 2013 Northeastern Illinois University Lech Walesa Hall, 3601 W. Bryn Mawr Chicago, Illinois (Free parking in Lot D only) 9:00 a.m. until 3:00 p.m. Onsite registration opens at 9 a.m. This is a FREE Event. Please Register by May 16, 2013 (workshops are subject to change) PTA Road to Success PTA President's Roundtable - Intro to PTA Money Matters
- Social & Emotional Learning
- Low Cost Parent Involvement Ideas
- Making Healthy Change
- Do We Need True GRIT?
- Parents Rights and Responsibilities in the School System
- Preparing for College Success
- Financial Aid 101 (English & Spanish)
- The Value of Advocacy in PTA
- A Special Lunch & Learn Presentation
- And more....
En Español PTA El Camino a Buen Éxito Derechos y Responsabilidades de los Padres Community Partners Chicago Children's Museum Illinois Student Assistant Commission Questions & RSVPs to: . |
2013 Black Male High School Graduates from Detroit, Flint, Milwaukee, Madison, Gary, Indianapolis, St. Louis, Davenport, Cleveland, Dayton and other mid-western cities are invited to join 1,000 Illinois High School Graduates at the Mass Black Male High School Graduation and Transition to Manhood Ceremony 2013. Illinois - On June 29, 2013, 1,000 young Black men will graduate from the high schools of Chicago and Illinois into life as young, positive Black men who will build their communities, their cities, their country and their race. This event is sponsored by Chicago State University and The Black Star Project.  Young Black male high school graduates of 2013 are invited to participate in the Mass Black Male Graduation and Transition to Manhood Ceremony 2013 at Chicago State University between 1:00 pm and 4:00 pm on Saturday, June 29, 2013. Each graduate will receive 3 tickets for parents, teachers and friends and will: - compete for jobs, internships and apprenticeships (only a few)
- open bank accounts
- sign up for military service
- connect to mentors
- create/begin a life plan
- register for Chicago State University or get information about other college opportunities
Superintendents, principals, teachers, counselors, parents, family members and friends should call 773.285.9600 to sign up young Black men for the Mass Black Male Graduation and Transition to Manhood Ceremony 2013. Young men should bring transcripts, FASFA's, ACT scores and resumes to help begin life after high school. Young men are asked to wear their cap and gown from their home high school. For more information or to register a young Black man for this once in a lifetime opportunity, please call 773.285.9600. Sincerely, Phillip Jackson Executive Director The Black Star Project ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- This idea was inspired by Dr. Willie Myles in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. |
| The Black Star Project supports Occupy The Streets of Chicago with Father Michael Pfleger and the Faith Community of Saint Sabina Friday, June 21, 2013 7:00 pm - 500 free t-shirts at 6:00 pm 78th Place and Throop (1250 west) Chicago, Illinois We invite people throughout Chicago to stand up and declare their commitment to occupy our streets this summer to bring about Peace! Call St. Sabina at 773.483.4300 Call The Black Star Project at 773.285.9600 |
 Sharp drop in black male enrollment in medical schools With 32 million Black Americans in U.S., Black males entering medical school fewer than 32 year ago
BY FREDDIE ALLEN, NNPA WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENTS  WASHINGTON (NNPA) - Fewer Black males were enrolled in the first year of medical schools last year than 32 years ago, a trend that, if left uncorrected, could hamper efforts to provide quality health care to underserved communities, according to a top officer in the American Association of Medical Colleges. Marc Nivet, chief diversity officer at the Association of American Medical Colleges, made that startling disclosure at the recent Howard University Symposium on Unites States Healthcare. "We don't have the luxury of waiting 10 years 15 years 20 years to intervene in effective ways to insure that we have the talent necessary to come to our institutions," Nivet said. "If we don't effectively intervene in this pipeline and hold our institutions and ourselves accountable for finding the talent that we know exists than we have failed those 32 million people soon to be enfranchised and we have failed ourselves." According to a diversity study by the Association of American Medical Colleges, Black women account for nearly two-thirds of the students entering the first year of medical school. "This positive trend for racial and ethnic minority women is not mirrored in their male counterparts: Black or African American males are applying to, being accepted to, and matriculating into medical school in diminishing numbers, which speaks to the increasing need for medical schools to institute plans and initiatives aimed at strengthening the pipeline," the report stated. Without access to pipeline programs, Black enrollment at medical schools may continue to decline. In 2011, Blacks accounted for 7.3 percent of medical school applicants, compared to 54.6 percent for Whites. Despite comprising 5.6 percent of the U.S. population, Asians accounted for 20.4 percent of medical school applicants that year. |
| The Black Star Project Supports Black Theatre  Become a member of The Black Star Project and purchase tickets for 50% off. Please call 773.285.9600 to become a Black Star Project member. |
 Save Our Sons: A Call to Action
Associate Professor of Education, Langston University 11/12/2012 4:06 pm  | | Matthew Lynch |
Education is the cornerstone of success. Those who are educated have more opportunity, tend to make better choices, and will go on to teach their children to do likewise. Those who are educated tend to give back to their community more than they take from it. With that being said, what can we surmise by what is happening in high schools around the nation, and especially in places like the Rochester Public School District? A lot! The Problem We have a serious problem in this country and it is one that is not getting nearly the amount of attention that it deserves. The problem is the number of black males who are, and who are not, graduating from high school around the nation. The statistics are startling and in my opinion, a major call for action. It is imperative that people become aware of what is going on so that we can use the information to do something about it, before it's too late. The Solution We need to create more intensive reading and math programs, to help set them up for academic success as they move through the grades, it is important that schools not be so quick to push out these black male students. Many are pushed out, or sent to special schools, simply because they fit a demographic and people expect them to behave a certain way, without actually giving them a chance. This is not an exhaustive list of solutions, but it's a start. Finally, because the problem in Rochester* and around America of our black males not graduating from high school does impact all of us, it's up to all of us to come up with solutions. You now know the facts, and you know what's at stake. What do you propose is the solution to this problem; one that will ensure that black males will see higher graduation rates, as well as the benefits that come along with it? |
| On Friday, May 17, 2013, The "Unbanked" Will Find Support with National Black Wall Street Chicago to Connect with Banks. 
6:00 pm to 8:00 pm 4655 South King Drive Chicago, Illinois |
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