ALMas

Happy November! Meet Daniel!
Name: Daniel Ramirez-Raftree
Year: 3rd
Major: Sociology/ Romance Languages and Literatures
Board Position: Director of Operations

Why he became involved in ALMas: I've been involved with a few teaching programs in recent years, and through them I've expanded my ideas about what it means to educate someone. As a result, I'm very interested in alternative teaching methods and education programs that can supplement public schooling. ALMas is an organization implementing a program that helps students by working outside the structures of typical public school classrooms, and I'm excited contribute. I am a Latin American immigrant, as are many of my friends. I've experienced what it's like struggling to navigate two cultures and languages, and I believe it's very valuable to know both and be able to switch fluently from one to the other. I'm looking forward to helping guide students who are working towards becoming comfortable with this skill.

Happy Monday! Meet Joseline!
Name: Joseline X. Gomez
Year: 3rd
Major: Psychology
Position in ALMas: Co-Chair

Why she became involved in ALMas: We have so many different tutoring and mentorship RSOs on campus, but what makes ALMas unique is that it focuses on a demographic that I feel is oftentimes ignored. The issues that surround Latino children- parents with little formal education, linguistic isolation, and coming from a poor economic household- are very specific to this community. ALMas aims to combat these issues and reduce the education achievement gap in a community that deserves the chance to achieve the American Dream by giving students an opportunity to succeed in school. I can see myself in the statistics that we often refer to when we talk about ALMas. I grew up in a poor household that spoke little English. Statistically speaking, I should not be where I am right now: at the University of Chicago among some of the most intelligent and motivated students. I feel completely blessed to have been able to overcome some of the obstacles that I faced in my life and would find no greater pleasure than in helping others who are in shoes that I once walked in.

The Dream of Hispanic Youngsters: Early Childhood & American Opportunity. May 22, 2013.
UChicago officially meets ALMas.

In its first operating year ALMas worked hard to organize a panel dedicated to helping us and the UChicago community better understand how young Hispanic children are impacted by educational opportunities in early childhood due to their background. The following are some of the questions that we asked that night: Where does immigration, economic opportunity, and early childhood development and education intersect? According to the four separate perspectives and fields of study presented(that the panelists provided), what can young Hispanics in the United States expect to make of themselves? What can they expect to achieve, or not? What trajectories of life can they most likely expect to follow given their circumstances from these four perspectives?

And finally, what role does public policy play to change these trajectories, if they are bad? And how should public policy address and support these Hispanic youngsters? What is the cost? What are the benefits? And are we willing to pay?

Photo Credit James Tao.

Stay tuned in the next couple days to learn about the people who have been working hard to make ALMas a possibility!