LG Helping Coordinate Natl. Youth Assembly

The Llano Grande Center is working with coordinators of the National Rural Assembly to produce a national youth assembly that will focus on issues affecting rural America and young people in particular.

The National Rural Youth Assembly, happening April 22-25, 2010 in Santa Fe, NM, is being opened to any young people ages 18-25 who are interested in rural issues and invested in making an impact in their local communities.

The assembly will engage young people on the key policy areas of the Rural Assembly including the quality of education, stewardship of our natural resources, investment in our communities, and the health of rural people. Youth will represent the diversity of rural America in geographies, races, cultures, genders, incomes and sexual orientations.

The National Rural Assembly will select 50 young people from around the country to participate in the Youth Assembly and will cover participants’ costs.

The application packet and more information can be downloaded HERE . Nominations are due Feb. 26, 2010. Interested participants can also visit http://www.ruralstrategies.org/national-rural-youth-assembly for more information.

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FACES Holds Workshop For Parents

Members of the Financial Aid and College Education Specialists (FACES) held a financial aid workshop this past week as part of the Edcouch-Elsa ISD Parent Conference.

The FACES seminar allowed the group to meet with youth and their families to offer assistance and guidance on becoming prepared for the college application process, applying to college, and finding financial aid. Parents who attended were able to ask questions of the group, and explored topics ranging from “what age should my child begin preparing for college” to “how do I motivate my child to apply to college?”

FACES is a Llano Grande student-led initiative funded by the State Farm Insurance Company and the State Farm Youth Advisory Board, which promotes youth leadership through service learning. The goal of FACES is to provide local families with access to expert answers and assistance on the college and financial aid application process.

Video of FACES Parent Workshop can be seen HERE:

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LG Students Visit Texas Schools

Year after year, the Llano Grande college trip represents an opportunity for students to explore their future and become excited about what is possible. This year was no different as a group of Edcouch-Elsa High School juniors joined Llano Grande on a visit to universities around Texas.

Pete Martinez, J.R. Rocha and Rey Ruiz were immersed in the college experience as they spent several days this past January on campuses, spending the night in dorms and sitting in on college classes. The three Llano Grande students visited schools around the Central Texas area, including the University of Texas – San Antonio (UTSA), Texas State University (TSU), the University of Texas (UT), Southwestern University, and St. Edward’s University.

The students were selected for the trip based on their interest in applying to college and the amount of preparation they’ve completed towards getting into college. The three juniors have already taken at least one of the standardized tests required as part of their application to college, and are already beginning to fill out entrance applications. Fundraising for the trip also began early in the year, with the students selling concessions at football games.

The Llano Grande Center has annually led a college visit with interested high school students as a way to expose them to the possibilities available to them after graduating from high school. One of Llano Grande’s founding philosophies is rooted in the college trip: that students should be encouraged to pursue dreams at the best universities in the country, and then bring their learning and experience back home.

Photos of the trip can be seen HERE:

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Llano Hosting “A Community Platica”

The Llano Grande Center, in collaboration with State Farm Insurance, is hosting “A Community Platica,” an event aimed at bringing together local people to talk about ways of making the Delta Area stronger.

The Platica, being held from 1-5 p.m. on December 11 at Edcouch-Elsa High School, is free and open to the public to attend. In particular, the Llano Grande Center is asking alumni from Edcouch-Elsa, La Villa and Monte Alto to be a part of the conversation.

The purpose of the Community Platica is to bring together local alumni, community members, educators, parents and youth to explore issues affecting our community and to create an action plan for improving conditions for the benefit of all Delta Area residents. Our goals for this event include:

o Open and mindful conversations;
o Strengthened relationships and partnerships;
o Identified action steps for strengthening the community; and
o A plan for ongoing engagement and communication.

Over the past 20 years, the Llano Grande Center has worked with the community to create opportunities for young people to become engaged citizens and powerful leaders. We’ve used strategies such as youth-adult partnerships, service-learning and collective leadership in our efforts and we’d like to invite you to join us chart a path forward.

We believe local experiences and expertise are extremely valuable and will enrich this Community Platica and its outcome. To RSVP for this event or if you have questions, contact Delia Pérez at 956-262-4474.

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Platica Yields Positive Results

In early December, approximately 50 community members convened to have a Community Platica. This event, hosted by Llano Grande and sponsored by State Farm Insurance Company, highlighted the importance of collective leadership and service-learning in making meaningful community change.

The Community Platica brought together local alumni, community members, educators, parents and youth to explore issues affecting our community and to create an action plan for improving conditions for the benefit of all Delta Area residents. Participants included residents of Monte Alto, La Villa, Edcouch, and Elsa—even alumni that traveled from out of town to attend.

Conversations were gracious and solutions-oriented. Demonstrating a deep pride and love for our communities, participants highlighted local people and relationships as central assets for achieving community change.

Four issues emerged as important priorities for action:

1. To build community and increase participation in change efforts through the creation of alumni associations, parent-teacher organizations, and collaboration between civic and business sectors.

2. To implement a communication strategy to inform stakeholders of community news by identifying fact seekers to write stories and disseminate information through print, radio and/or social media.

3. To establish a nonprofit youth recreation center to nurture our children’s creativity, athleticism and learning—with the support of local municipalities and volunteers.

4. To engage the community for better understanding of the issues affecting Edcouch-Elsa High School and to build partnerships with relevant stakeholders to address those issues.

Excited about the process of engagement, the prospect for action and meaningful conversation, participants called for future Platicas to be held. Look out for the next Platica in late February/early March or participate in one of the action teams in the interim by contacting the Llano Grande Center.

Whether you live here or not, if you care about this community you can contribute to these efforts. As Salvador Cardenas, who traveled from San Antonio said, “Even though I don’t live here right now, these towns are part of my upbringing and part of my identity. I still care about what happens here and want to help make a difference.”

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LG Students Heading To DC

Over the past 20 years, Llano Grande students have shown that they know what it takes to complete college—more than 85% of the students who have gone through our program have earned their college degree.

This week, our students will be heading up to Washington, DC, to share with others how our community-based, locally influenced brand of teaching and learning has made the difference in creating college success. Edcouch-Elsa High School sophomore Kayla Garza, and juniors Cesar Guerrero, Gina Silva and Ray Uribe, will be attending the Voices In Action: National Youth Summit, happening Saturday, February 26, at the historic Howard University to talk about their own experiences with Llano Grande and the difference it’s made in their college goals.

The Summit, being coordinated by the U.S. Department of Education, was created in response to an initiative by President Barack Obama to raise the college completion rate in the United States. A recent study ranked the U.S. 12th in the world for college completion, a significant decline from the top spot once held here. While countries are seeing upwards of 60-70% of their students finish college, only a little more than 40% are currently doing so here in the U.S.

The President has made a pledge to make the U.S. the number one country in the world again for college completion by the year 2020, and as part of the pledge, has invited young people to the capitol city to hear their ideas on how to make this happen. Speakers – including our students from the Llano Grande Center – have been asked to share the innovative teaching and learning methods that have made their communities so successful.

As part of the trip, the students will be meeting with Llano Grande partner organizations including Chelsea, MA-based ROCA Inc.; Minneapolis-based Migizi Communications, Inc.; and Honolulu-based Hawai‘inuiākea School of Hawaiian Knowledge. These organizations represent sites that the Llano Grande Center has worked with before through initiatives with the W.K. Kellogg Foundation. Each organization is sending youth representatives who will also be participating in the National Youth Summit.

The teams will spend Thursday and Friday building relationships with each other, co-creating a presentation for the National Youth Summit, and visiting elected leaders at the U.S. Capitol before attending the Summit on Saturday.

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