New education initiative branches out
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 Heriberto Uribe takes a Steps To College class at Dalton State College. He said the program has encouraged him to think about becoming a teacher. |
September 25, 2002
The Red and Black
A statewide initiative to provide broader educational access for Latino students has branched out into new avenues of service.
The Hispanic Pilot Program, under the direction of University Vice President for Public Service and Outreach Arthur Dunning, is offering 150 scholarships to teachers across the state trying to earn their English to Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) certification.
HPP is a product of a 1998 Board of Regents task force that convened to determine the best way to meet the educational requirements of a burgeoning Hispanic population, according to its Web site.
"Not all schools in Georgia are able to offer language instruction because they do not have teachers with ESOL skills," said Jennifer Frum, administrative coordinator of the program. "This is critical because language problems can impede students' academic success."
This additional aspect of HPP complements an existing portion, Steps To College (STC), a summer program designed to encourage interest in post-secondary education among middle and high school Hispanic students.
The University held its first STC session this past summer in a joint effort with the Clarke County school district and succeeded in graduating 34 of the school system's Hispanic students, Frum said.
"We work with the school districts, teachers and counselors to identify students who would be good candidates for participation in the program," said Frum, who is also an assistant director in the University's Office of International Public Service and Outreach.
She said the University decided to hold its own STC session after its success at Gainesville College, which recently graduated 120 students from its third summer program.
While Frum said she thought it was too early to see the fruition of the University's STC program, she said several students, who took part in STC at Gainesville College, were now enrolled in school there.
She also noted that Dalton State College, the third school participating in STC, found 84 percent of participants felt they were better prepared for academic success at the college level.
A third part of HPP involved seeking community ideas and support, said Terry Salguero, a part-time program coordinator for HPP. Salguero said HPP "put out a call for proposals," which were turned in Friday.
HPP received 12 proposals from school districts and non-profit agencies that will be evaluated by a committee of Hispanic leaders, including the Consulate General of Mexico.
HPP hopes to announce the new programs by mid- to late October.