LEAD XI Summit revisits and honors social movements

The Latino Education and Advocacy Days Summit XI, set for Sept. 30 at Cal State San Bernardino, will feature speakers and panel sessions commemorating social movements from the past 50 years that includes the birth of Chicano-ethnic studies, school walkouts/blowouts, bilingual education and the Chicano Moratorium.

“Movimiento y Compromiso: 50 Years of Challenges, Possibilities, and the Quest for Educational Equity,” will be from 8 a.m. to about 4 p.m. in the CSUSB Santos Manuel Student Union North.

This year, Richard Anthony Marin, better known as Cheech Marin, actor, director, writer, musician, humanitarian and art collector, serves as the honorary chair/padrino de honor.

Each year the summit, which is open to the public and free to attend, brings together teaching professionals and educators, researchers, academics, scholars, administrators, independent writers and artists, policy and program specialists, students, parents, civic leaders, activists and advocates – all sharing a common interest and commitment to education issues that impact Latinos to help them define the future. 

“Although the anniversaries of the historic events of the Chicano Movement should be remembered and commemorated, and while they are of great educative value, what holds most true today is that the economic, social and political issues, and conditions with which the Chicano movements grappled 50 years ago have yet to be resolved,” said Enrique G. Murillo, LEAD executive director and CSUSB professor of education. “With this year's Summit theme, we hope that succeeding generations, many who feel disconnected from these long-ago events, engage in the network of interlocking issues, equip their civic, educational, and advocacy competencies, and ultimately grab the baton and continue the struggle.

This year’s summit will begin with the pledge of allegiance, the singing of the “Star Spangled Banner” and Mexico’s national anthem, Himno Nacional Mexicano and the invocation, followed by a procession “Honoring of the Movement Elders” and welcoming remarks from CSU Interim Chancellor Jolene Koester; CSUSB President Tomás D. Morales; Robert Nava, CSUSB vice president for Advancement and executive director of the CSUSB Philanthropic Foundation; and Chinaka S. DomNwachukwu, dean of the CSUSB James R. Watson and Judy Rodriguez Watson College of Education.

The summit panel sessions are:

• 10 a.m. – Cheech Marin will speak on the creation of “The Cheech Marin Center for Chicano Art, Culture & Industry” in the Riverside Art Museum. Marin will be introduced by Judy Rodriguez Watson, senior vice president of the J. R. Watson & Associates Development Corp. and the 2011 LEAD Summit Madrina de Honor.
• 10:50 a.m. – “Movimiento y Compromiso: History, Goals and the 50 Years of Challenges and Accomplishments,” a panel session moderated by Armando Vazquez-Ramos, co-founder of Chicano and Latino Studies at California State University, Long Beach, and president of the California-Mexico Studies Center. The panelists are Silas Abrego, member of the California State University Board of Trustees (2015-2021); and Luis C. Garza, La Raza Magazine photographer and curator of the Autry Museum of the West “La Raza” exhibition.   
• 11:30 a.m. – “Taking Back the Schools: the Educational Legacy of the East Los Angeles Walkouts,” a panel session moderated by Alberto Juárez, adjunct professor, political science and Chicano Studies, Pasadena City College and L.A. Mission College. The panelists are Paula Crisostomo, retired educator and 1968 Lincoln High School student; Rachael Ochoa Cervera, retired educator, 1968 Los Angeles City College student and Roosevelt High School graduate; and Victoria Castro, retired Los Angeles Unified School District teacher, principal and school board member, and 1968 Cal State Los Angeles student.
• 12:45 p.m. – “In the Name of Cultural and Linguistic Pride: the Impact and Promises of Bilingualism, Bilingual Education & Title VII-BEA,” a panel session moderated by Margarita Machado-Casas, professor and chair of the Department of Dual Language and English Learner Education, San Diego State University and director of Transnational Educational Exchange and Intercultural Relations for LEAD Global Network. The panelists are Barbara Flores, professor emerita, Department of Teacher Education and Foundations, James R. Watson and Judy Rodriguez Watson College of Education, Cal State San Bernardino; Alberto M. Ochoa, professor emeritus, Department of Dual Language and English Learner Education, San Diego State University;  Ellen Riojas Clark, professor emerita, Department of Bicultural-Bilingual Studies, College of Education and Human Development, University of Texas at San Antonio and 2015 LEAD Summit Madrina de Honor.
• 1:25 p.m. – Rosalío Urias Muñoz, Chicano journalist, anti-war and anti-police brutality activist will speak on “Social Justice at Home: the Chicano Moratorium and the Power of Protest. The talk will be moderated by the Rev. Richard Estrada, Justice Now Minister at The Historic Church of the Epiphany, and former associate pastor of Our Lady Queen of Angels “La Placita” Church.
• 2:10 p.m. – “Moving Past the Nostalgia: From the Origins of El Plan de Santa Bárbara for Higher Education and Chicano Studies, Toward the Continuing Quest for Educational Equity.” The moderator is Armando Vazquez-Ramos, co-founder of Chicano and Latino Studies at California State University, Long Beach, and president of the California-Mexico Studies Center. The panelists are Rita M. Cepeda, chancellor emeritus San Jose/ Evergreen Community College District; José B. Cuéllar (Dr. Loco), musician, anthropologist and professor emeritus of Latino studies, San Francisco State University; Esther Alonso Gómez, doctoral candidate National Autonomous University of Mexico, and Binational Academic Liaison and Dreamers Study Abroad Program research team, California-Mexico Studies Center; and Isabel Medina Ruiz, doctoral candidate – National Autonomous University of Mexico, and Binational Academic Projects Coordinator and Dreamers Study Abroad Program research team - California-Mexico Studies Center.
• 3:15 p.m. – Concluding remarks and acknowledgements.

For more information, visit LEAD Summit XI.