Alsame has been active state wide in sponsoring college fairs for Latino students and parents, disseminating information about colleges and universities to students and community agencies, and gathering data which will assist Latino students in their pursuit of higher education.
In addition, Alsame has been a resource not only to educational entities but also to organizations in the non-educational arena interested in the economic and political welfare of Latino students in the state of Michigan.
Alsame is also concerned with the quality of life of Latino/Hispanic students on Michigan college campuses, the large number who do not complete college; and the lack of Latino/Hispanic professionals on the campuses to assist incoming Latino/Hispanic students.
The Executive Board:
Chair Florensio Hernandez – Michigan State University Office of Admissions
Vice Chair – Patricia Young – Central Michigan University Undergraduate Admissions
Secretary – Santos Gutierrez
Scholarship Coordinator – Vanessa Reynolds Wayne State University Office of Admissions
Treasurer – Ignacio Andrade Community Outreach Coordinator and Student Liason
Communications Manager – Salvador Lopez Grand Valley State Office of Admissions & Associate Director Diversity Recruitment
Data Manager – Leo Ornelas Migrant Student Services & CAMP Recruitment Coordinator
For more information about ALSAME and the different resources they have access to please contact the Chair Florensio Hernandez at Herna159@msu.edu.
In what started as an idea by Executive Director Dr. Felipe Lopez-Sustaita a couple years ago, has become quite an exciting and beautiful event to witness. With about 350 people in attendance, the 2018 Statewide Hispanic/Latino College Graduation Ceremony celebrated their second annual ceremony at the Lansing Center in Lansing, Michigan Friday, April 6, 2018. 70 graduates made it from across the State of Michigan to take part in the Hispanic Latino Commission of Michigan Program. With so many colleges and universities that were represented, I would be embarrassed to mention them by name and miss one as it appeared we had graduates from quite a few different entities.
The Statewide Graduation kicked off a big weekend for the Latino community in Michigan. Following the graduation was a fundraising event for Cristo Rey Community Center aboard the Michigan Princess. The next day was the 25th Dia de la Mujer at the Kellogg Center located on the campus of Michigan State University. The usual attendance there is about 550 people from around the State making it one of the biggest conferences in Michigan. Saturday evening brought in the popular Latin Xplosion program also at the Kellogg Center.
Lansing has long needed more events catering to the Latino population and this one not only has been successful, it has in only two years become a “can’t miss’ event. Congrats to Dr. Felipe Lopez-Sustaita and his team on their success and future success of this program. Felicidades go out to all the graduates who made it to Lansing and much continued success in all of your endeavors!
The Hispanic Latino Commission exists to advocate for the well-being of the Hispanic/Latino population with the vision of achieving an environment of social justice and economic parity for the Hispanic/Latino population.
Mission: To enhance the abilities of Michigan Hispanics by improving their quality of life and by:
Promoting the appointment of more Hispanics in positions of influence in the public and private sector.
Increasing the economic growth and stability of Hispanics.
Increasing awareness and support of Hispanic issues by local and state government officials.
Promoting better education and academic achievement of Hispanics.
Creating a participatory, empowered Hispanic/Latino Commission of Michigan
Vision: To achieve an environment of social justice and economic parity for the Hispanic/Latino population.
The Hispanic/Latino Commission is a 15-member Commission under the Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs. Commissioners are appointed by the Governor of Michigan, for three-year terms, subject to the advice and consent of the State Senate. Commission Leadership is elected from within the Commission.
Noel Garcia – Chair
Sonya Hernandez – Vice Chair
Jeremiah Hernandez – Secretary
Juan Marinez – Trustee
Your Commissoners can be found at this link: https://www.michigan.gov/hlcom/0,7478,7-354-80572—,00.html
To connect with the Commission please email them at hlcomm@michigan.gov or call them at 517-373-8339 or reach out to them via Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/hlcommission/
ALSAME recently held elections and the new Chair is Santos Gutierrez who works at Lansing Community College. Santos who works as a Mulitcultural Recruitment Coordinator at LCC. Chosen for the Vice Chair role was Patricia Young of Central Michigan University. Treasurer and Secretary are now Ignacio Andrade (Michigan State University) and Vanessa Nava (Wayne State Universtiy) respectively. These four officers will be taking over a organization that is known for its Fall Annual Conference that brings together students from around the State and for its assistance that it provides to many different High Schools with information about pathways to college.
One of the lesser known Latino Non-profits in the Mid-Michigan area but perhaps has one of the richest history’s is the ALSAME Organization. ALSAME stands for Advocates for Latino Student Advancement in Michigan Education. One of the more vibrant non-profits that we have in the area as it has a mixture of both young and experienced professionals that work together to promote higher education among the State’s Latino population.
ALSAME began in 1970 under the name of “Associations of Chicanos in College Admissions (ACCA) led by a group of Hispanic college admissions professionals who felt the need to address the low levels of Hispanics entering college. The Annual Conference, college fairs, High School visits, phone calls from school counselors (or regular people like me), answering questions by phone or email, attending area events to pass out information are just some of the ways that this group puts out the word of its usefulness. I myself have called people from some of these schools advocating for a high school student. I make the contact, connection and the ALSAME representative takes over. Instead of a student seeing something online about a college, they can get a live voice and someone whom the student might be more comfortable with.
Photo credit (Miguel Torres)
For more information please feel free to contact Santos Guiterrez at 517-483-9962
ALSAME on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/search/str/alsame/keywords_top
ALSAME on the web: http://www.alsame.org/home
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