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Sarah Curtis is the coordinator for the retention program Chican@s
and Latin@s Educandose (Ch.A.L.E.). This year posed many challenges
for her; however, the internship provided her with a tremendous
wealth of learning experiences that she will transfer into all aspects
of her life. Her primary task was to focus on creating a structure
and foundation for the program and to ensure growth in the future.
Sarah’s main accomplishment was creating a five-year strategic
plan for Ch.A.L.E. The plan will provide direction and guidance
for future coordinators. It is her hope that the five-year goals
that she proposed will help the organization bloom into a vibrant
program that will continue to grow and foster the development and
advancement of Chicano and Latino students at the University of
California, Santa Cruz.
Ch.A.L.E. de UCSC is committed towards raising the retention and
graduation rate of Chicano and Latino students at UCSC. Given the
high drop-out rates of the community Sarah serves, Ch.A.L.E. is
dedicated to researching the critical needs of the community, providing
support services, and advocating for policy changes in order to
ensure that more Chicano and Latino students are receiving their
degrees from UCSC.
Sarah enjoyed her internship immensely, having been a part of the
Ch.A.L.E. mentorship program in her first year. As a first generation
college student, the mentorship program helped her transition into
the university. She enjoyed her experiences with the mentorship
program so much that she decided to be apart of Ch.A.L.E. core.
Working with core provided her with enough knowledge, confidence
and information about retention issues that she decided to apply
to the internship program. Looking back, she has enjoyed the friendships
and leadership experience she gained from participating in the program.
The CUIP course has allowed Sarah to learn more about university
structure and how to work to make change within an institution of
higher education. The class provided her with the opportunity to
build her interpersonal and communication skills, public speaking
skills and many other useful professional skills.
Sarah has her heart set on participating in the Chicano/Latino Research
Center’s Undergraduate Research Apprenticeship Program next
year. This program will allow Sarah to research issues affecting
Chicano and Latino communities within the United States and in Latin
America. Sarah also plans on focusing on her studies next year as
she plans to attend graduate school in the future. She is a second
year student majoring in Global Economics and Latin American/Latino
Studies. She hopes to use the knowledge she gained while attending
UC Santa Cruz and transfer that energy to bringing about social
change for her community.
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