Hispanic Cultural Studies Students Present at César Chávez Celebration

two guys, one with facial hair both wearing black t-shirts

Two Ph.D. students in the Department of Romance and Classical Studies will be among the presenters at the 6th Annual César E. Chávez Commemorative Celebration on Friday, April 1, at Michigan State University.

Jose Adrian Badillo Carlos, a second-year doctoral student in Hispanic Cultural Studies, will be one of the featured speakers at the event. In addition, he will be joined by Osvaldo Sandoval, also a second-year Ph.D. student in Hispanic Cultural Studies, and Aida Cuadrado, community organizer with Action of Greater Lansing, to present a workshop on deferred action for childhood arrivals (DACA) and college applications.

“Our main purpose is to educate on the opportunities and difficulties while building community support for undocumented high school students who want to attend college,” Badillo Carlos said. “We are motivated to educate and support our community and other DREAMers who want to get a college education but face many challenges. We want to show them that there are opportunities for them to succeed and bring diversity to our college community.”

The Commemorative Celebration will include the Chávez Community Leadership Luncheon from noon to 1:30 p.m. followed by the Chávez Student Leadership Conference from 1:30 to 4 p.m. Both events take place in the Kellogg Hotel and Conference Center in Big Ten Room B and C.

We want to show them that there are opportunities for them to succeed and bring diversity to our college community.

JOSE ADRIAN BADILLO CARLOS

The planning committee designed the conference for college and pre-college students to learn to become leaders and build a support network. The workshops and sessions focus on leadership development and skill building, human and civil rights, nonviolence, social and economic justice, equal access, community service, civic engagement, and collective responsibility.

The conference is expected to draw students from Detroit, Flint, Lansing, and other cities in the mid-Michigan area.

The Commemorative Celebration is part of a larger coordinated effort by the Michigan State University César E. Chávez Commemorative Celebration Planning Committee, the City of Lansing’s Human Relations and Community Services Department, and the Lansing Community College LUCERO Program to offer outstanding opportunities to the community on April 1 to honor the life and work of Chávez.

All events are free and open to the public, but space is limited and pre-registration is required.

For more information or to register, visit the César E. Chávez web page on the Office for Inclusion and Intercultural Initiatives website: http://www.inclusion.msu.edu/Outreach/CesarChavez.html.