The 9th annual Latina Connection Conference is seeking to help Cal State Long Beach Latina student’s feel connected and empowered in their educational endeavors.
In fall 2001, Rosa Moreno-Alcaraz, a psychologist at Counseling and Psychological Services, and Rosa Carillo, an alumna who worked in Outreach and School Relations, established a Latina conference that would not only help Latinas feel more comfortable and connected with their campus, but would help prevent them from dropping out of college.
“The purpose of the conference is for Latina students to connect with one another,” Moreno said. “The small group activities allow students to see that they are not alone; it validates and normalizes their experience.”
The conference offers Latina students a sense of empowerment through long-time relationships and mentorship with other Latina students, faculty and staff. It encourages persistence and retention of Latinas by promoting self-awareness through discussion, challenging students to take personal responsibility for their education. It also helps them explore the role of culture and family in their academic careers.
“Connecting with other Latina women is always very empowering,” said Claudia Lopez, EOP counselor and conference panelist. “Some students feel alone on campus, but during the conference, they find commonalities amongst each other, and when they leave [the conference] they feel more connected to each other, and they’ve met someone they can share the same experience with.”
Lopez, who graduated with a master’s degree in public policy and administration from CSULB, decided to take part in the event because she had always received positive feedback from her students about it.
It has been said by many, including Moreno, that when students don’t feel connected to their campus, they are more likely to drop out of school than students who join school activities.
Sandra Olmedo, one of the founders of Hermanas Unidas de Long Beach, an organization that helps Latinos on campus by providing resources and leadership opportunities, attended the conference while she was a student at CSULB. According to Moreno, attending the conference provided her with some of the support she needed to establish Hermanas Unidas.
Ruth Moran, co-chair of Hermanas Unidas and a senior business student, is part of the Latina Conference committee and has previously attended the event.
This year, she will help facilitate small groups called “familias” that discuss different issues.
“Attending the conference last year benefitted me on a personal level. I got to meet and network with people and professors I would’ve never met,” Moran said. “As a business student, I’ve never had a Latino professor; [the conference] helped me find people I could relate to.”
The conference will include a panel of women from an array of career fields: Rosa Hernandez, 49er Shop Inc. director of communications; Anna Sandoval, Chicano Latino studies assistant professor; and Lopez.
The panel will also include representatives from the University Library, Study Abroad office and McNair Scholars Program to inform students of campus resources and offer academic strategies for life-long success.
The conference will be hosted at the University Student Union Ballrooms on Thursday from 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.