SJCC MEChA officers

Below are the descriptions and duties of MEChA officers, so that members can reflect on possible positions available to them:(duties taken directly from Official National Mecha Documentos: Mecha Constitution http://www.nationalmecha.org/documents/nationalConstitution.pdf)

President: Facilitates every meeting, keeps consistant communication among sjcc mecha members as well as network connections within the community. official representative and spokesperson for the mecha club (when considering national business and public relations).  Works with every officer to plan out each event ahead of time.

Vice-President: works alongside president in establishing network connections with the public and within the school. Serves as the second representative and official spokesperson for the club.  Will work closley with all other officers and members in coordinating events, responsible for completing and issuing correspondence regarding the organizations of events.

Secretary: To keep the minutes of all meetings and present them at each subsequent meeting for official approval by the  membership.To assist the Co-Chairperson (president and vice)  in receiving and issuing correspondences regarding the activities, course of action and policies of the club; To record attendance at all meetings; To maintain a historical file of all official  activities and functions.  also updates members about upcoming events and important information.

Treasurer: Watches funding and prepares club funds to be distibuted amongst the main events for the club (semester by semester course).  Must also work in coordinating and managing fundraisers so as to accumulate funds.  Works closely with other officers to prepare funds for organizations and scholarships that we support.

Publicity: Advertises for all events, functions and meetings of mecha.  Must create a committee responsible for distibuting fliers, poster, and information about upcoming events and functions.  Also works with secretary in updating all members about important information.

All officer positions contribute to the overall success of the MEChA club.  Each position has specific duties, yet majority overlap so that all five officers work closley with one another to achieve the goals of the club.  Communication is extremely important between these people, who are responsible for communicating to other members about information and action items.  If you, reader, are a prospective mecha officer please regard the information above as well as the official constitution of mecha: http://www.nationalmecha.org/documents/nationalConstitution.pdf

SJCC KinderCaminata2009

San Jose City College is hosting their 4th annual KinderCaminata to promote education within the youth community.  Below is the event information, taken from SJCC website:

“San José City College will sponsor our 4th Annual KinderCaminata, a child-oriented “career fair” on campus, Thursday April 23rd from 8:30 A.M. to 12:30 P.M. to celebrate “The Day of the Child” (El Día del Niño).  More than 850 kindergarten students from the Alum Rock Union School District will walk through our San José City College campus moving through a series of career stations to learn about various professions. KinderCaminata gives these children the promise of higher education as well as the ability to experience information regarding different careers.  Last year some of our outstanding faculty and staff participated in KinderCaminata.  As in the previous year we are in need of our faculty and staff to support this event by providing the children with age appropriate on their area of expertise. Tables will be provided for your inviting, colorful, and informative display.  We hope to offer these children an interactive opportunity to see what kinds of things they can learn in college.  We also need volunteers to receive students, tour guides and various other activities.

During the event, each child will be given a treasure bag. If you have a small “Treasure” (an item that is related to your area or discipline) that the children can be given, it would be greatly appreciated.  Prepare for up to 850 smiling faces.

If you would like to help make KinderCaminata a successful experience for these children by hosting a career station, please call Phil Renteria in the Office of Student Life at ext. 3160.

Thank you in advance for your consideration. We hope you will join us.  Let’s come together as a campus community to make this an enjoyable experience for our visiting Kindergartners.

Thank you in advance for your participation

Phil Renteria
Chair, KinderCaminata 2009
Director of Student Life
San Jose City College
298-2181 ext. 3160″

M.E.Ch.A members will be volunteering in an effort to promote extensive education to young minds-specifically minority youth.  Education is a main issue within  M.E.Ch.A’s agenda.

The mission concerning education within the organization, as described within the National MEChA Constitution:

“Article II: Organization Objectives
Section 1. National MEChA outlines the following organizational objectives.

A) To strive for educational, cultural, economical, political, and social
empowerment within the Chicano community in order to liberate
nuestra gente;

B) To undertake the responsibility of retaining our identity and
furthering our cultural awareness;

C) To undertake the responsibility of uplifting and mobilizing
Chicanos and Chicanas through higher education;

D) To implement plans of action concerning Chicanos and Chicanas;”

(Taken from the National MEChA Constitution March 21st, 2009)

For the entire constitution, refer to the link below:

Click to access nationalConstitution.pdf

Official National MEChA website linked below:

http://www.nationalmecha.org/

It is our duty, as Mechistas, to ensure that everyone has the opportunity to receive a college education.  This is, as we all have seen/experienced, a dire issue within the minority communities, specifically within our Chicano community.

Education Objectives are further discussed within the National MEChA philosophy:

“Objective Five: M.E.Ch.A. must work for the establishment of an alliance for Chicano educational rights that will be built locally and then linked to region, state, and national levels.

Process of Implementation: 1) M.E.Ch.A. chapters should push for area-wide conference on Chicana/Chicano educational rights and then mobilize on issues of concern on an ongoing basis.

Objective Six: M.E.Ch.A. must create educational mentor/tutor type programs organized at the Central level that shall serve as the foundation for all other organizing efforts for Chicana/Chicano educational rights. Such mentor/tutor programs should have the following goals: 1) Training Mechistas as mentors/tutors to serve as a fundamental retention strategy since such training enhances the mentor/tutor’s own academic skills; 2) Mentor/tutors, when trained become a key element in recruitment; and 3) Utilize mentor/tutors to work with parents in establishing a communications network on college preparation, educational issues, and advocacy through educational issues, and advocacy through educational institutions.”

For the entire philosophy and complete schedule of objectives concerning MEChA:

http://www.nationalmecha.org/philosophy.html#challenge%20of%20the%20future

Mechistas and additional students that are interested in participating in this event and thus, the overall commitment to promoting education, should regard the information above and contact Phil at SJCC.

SJCC Mecha Dream In reflection-March 19, 2009

The SJCC Dream In was the main event for MEChA thus far.  Taking place on March 10-11, we camped out at the school’s GE quad area for a fun yet educational night.  This was in support of the Dream Act, a proposal designed to help undocumented students obtain a college education here in the US.  To find out more about the act and how you can help, please refer to this link:

http://www.dreamact.info/

Here are some photos to display the success of the Dream In: (photos include Jim Kelly, Jorge Gonzalez [founder of MEChA], Fabio Gonzalez [SJCC EOPS counselor]). Also in this photo gallery are student testimonial pictures, music (provided by Covarrubias, Jim Kelly and students). Enjoy!

Below is a reflection on the Dream In, as written by the SJCC MEChA club advisor and SJCC instructor, Mr. Covarrubias:

A huge thanks on behalf of M.E.Ch.A. students to our campus community for assisting in making yesterday’s Dream-In a success. Special Thanks to custodial staff, Technology department, Faculty/Staff and administration for supporting the event. There was tremendous support by students from SJSU, DeAnza, and EVC. In addition to drawing attention to the Dream Act, SJCC students demonstrated their commitment to social justice as a core value within this district.

For those that did not participate here’s a brief overview:

The event included close to 100 supporters, 17 tents with between 20-30 student dreamers. In addition, documentary films were shown, guest speakers included former SJ board member, Jorge Gonzalez, SJCC board member Richard Hobbs, music (special thanks to Jim Kelly for helping out), student testimonials and food (including Abuelita’s hot chocolate!).

The event also attracted media attention from KTVU, KLIV Radio, and NBC Bay Area!

Thank you.
Instructor J. Covarrubias

San Jose City College

Hello world!

Welcome to WordPress.com. This is your first post. Edit or delete it and start blogging!