For Immediate Release
05/20/13

                        Delta Trustee Janet Rivera and Bipartisan Latino Policymakers
                                 Address Needs of Latino Students in Nation's Capital
               Members of National Taskforce Represent 13.6 Million Latino Students Nationwide

(Stockton)
San Joaquin Delta College Trustee Janet Rivera joined Latino public officials from across the nation at the National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials(NALEO) National Taskforce on Education in Washington D.C. (May 21-22). Over 13.6 million Latino students (ages 5-21) are currently enrolled in American schools. The NALEO Taskforce representatives will discuss the impact of sequestration and strategies for improving Latino student success with members of Congress and the Obama Administration. 

As part of the NALEO Taskforce visit to the nation’s capital, Trustee Rivera met with members of the Administration, Department of Education and Congress to address a variety of issues and concerns. Discussions include the need for increased funding to foster the development of early childhood education programs; improved access to higher education for Latino youth, and the creation of a more seamless transfer pathway for students from community colleges to four year universities.

“More than 13 million students in our public schools are Latino,” said Rivera. “We cannot afford to have American Latino students falling behind. Our goal is to work together across party lines to ensure that necessary support is in place to help the nation’s second largest population group thrive in our schools.”

“Delta College is very proud that one of our trustees has been chosen to serve on this extremely important taskforce,” said Superintendent/President Kathy Hart. “Janet Rivera, the only community college trustee on the Taskforce, will represent the interests of all students as well as American Latino students on these important issues of access and pathways to student success.”

The NALEO Taskforce was established in 2009 to address federal education issues that have a significant impact on the success of our nation’s Latino students. The Taskforce is the only national, bipartisan education coalition of Latino leadership in the country. The coalition includes: school board members; higher education system leaders, and state legislators representing a broad cross-section of leadership in the Latino education community. The NALEO Educational Fund is the nation's leading nonprofit organization that facilitates the full participation of Latinos in the American political process, from citizenship to public service.

The 26 member Taskforce is led by co-chairs Monica Garcia, Los Angeles Unified School District Board of Education President, and Ana Sol Gutierrez, State Delegate of Maryland. The Taskforce is part of the NALEO Education Leadership Initiative (NELI).

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                               Summer School starts at Delta College Monday, June 10
                                        For more information: www.deltacollege.edu