Every spring, college and university representatives gather at the National Capitol Forum on Hispanic Higher Education in Washington D.C.
It’s a place for advocates of higher education opportunities for Hispanics to meet and discuss issues with policymakers, corporate leaders and other key officials.
Juan Escalante meets with congressman Ron Barber in Washington D.C. last week.
This year, Cochise College sent a student as its representative to last week’s forum, held April 15-16, organized by the Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities (HACU). Juan Escalante, from Douglas, is majoring in exercise science with plans to graduate in May, then enter the college’s new respiratory therapy program. He’s also a first-generation Hispanic college student and jumped at the chance to share his perspective with members of the House and Senate at the 18th annual forum.
“We talked a lot about how investing in education is investing in the nation’s future,” Escalante said. “Congressmen aren’t seeing funding education as an investment, but rather as another expense. Students like myself can be influential. Most of the representatives I talked to had no idea how much grants can help people, and I actually met with (congressmen) Ron Barber, Raul Grijalva and (senator) Jeff Flake, told them my story, and they were intrigued.”
Escalante is the second oldest of four siblings, all born in the United States, whose parents were deported to Mexico a few years ago, leaving the eldest brother, then 18, as the legal guardian of the family. Escalante said watching his parents work low-income jobs while they lived in the United States helped motivate him to pursue a higher degree after high school, which would be near impossible without Pell Grants and scholarships.
“Education is the way to get to a better life,” he said. “At the forum, I felt like a difference-maker. I feel like my representatives have a better idea of how to vote in funding higher education. I think I made a great impact on them.”
Verlyn Fick, Cochise College’s Vice President for Instruction, said the college is making an effort to increase its participation in the two main events HACU offers each year: the Capitol Forum in the spring and the Annual Conference in the fall.
“The Capitol Forum is all about advocacy, and the one thing I know about advocacy and higher education is that politicians at the state and federal level listen a little closer when the words are coming from a student’s mouth,” Fick said. “Real-life stories get across the ideas of where the needs might be.”
Cochise College is one of 11 schools in Arizona classified as a Hispanic-Serving Institution, defined as “colleges, universities or systems/districts where total Hispanic enrollment constitutes a minimum of 25 percent of the total enrollment.” Based on the fall 2011 headcount, about 40 percent of Cochise College’s student population is Hispanic or Latino.
This year, Escalante is the president of the Student Government Association on the Douglas Campus, as well as a member of Club TRiO, part of a program designed to support students from disadvantaged backgrounds. His younger brother Jose, an engineering major, is the SGA treasurer. Escalante said his first time in Washington D.C. led to fruitful networking opportunities and valuable information about internships.
“HACU offers internships for low-income Hispanic students,” he said. “I think I might do that, not this summer, but the following, and try to get into the Department of Health. It’s a good opportunity to boost my resume. I was lucky to have the opportunity to go on this trip.”