August 11, 2021

Chris de Hoyos

The Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities has announced the agenda and speakers of its Seventh Annual PreK-12/Higher Education Collaboration Symposium taking place virtually, Oct. 21, 2021. The one-day Symposium, sponsored by the American Fedration of Teachers, will address effective collaborations between PreK-12 schools and higher education institutions that are addressing the needs of students as we move towards a post-pandemic era.

Three panel sessions will focus on the following topics:

"College and Career Access Amid the Pandemic," panelists will include Anna Lisa Vargas, director, Seguin Early College High School; Catalina Cifuentes, executive director of college and career readiness, Riverside County Office of Education; Alejandra Campos, director of multicultural recruitment/senior assistant director of admissions, the University of Chicago; and moderated by Raul Cardenas Jr., Ph.D., president and CEO, JK Mullins High School.

"The Future of the Teaching Profession," panelists will include by Margarita Bianco, Ed.D., founder, Pathways2Teaching, associate professor, the University of Colorado; Belinda Flores, Ph.D., associate dean of professional preparation and programs, the University of Texas at San Antonio; Mary Cathryn Ricker, executive director, Albert Shanker Institute; and moderated by Stephanie Vasquez, chief program officer of AlamoPROMISE, Alamo Colleges District.

"Schools Reopening and English Language Learners," panelists will include Betsy Sotomayor, ESOL district specialist, Volusia County Schools; Glenda Macal, president, Fort Bend Federation of Teachers; Kati Bassler, president, Salinas Valley Federation of Teachers; and moderated by Olga Hugelmeyer, superintendent, Elizabeth Public Schools.

A downloadable flyer is available here.

The Seventh Annual PreK-12/Higher Education Collaboration Symposium, sponsored by AFT, is a pre-conference event of HACU’s 35^th Annual Conference taking place virtually on Oct. 25–27, 2021.