Tuesday, May 26, 1998
ASU holds event to educate, help high schoolers
ACADEMICS: Teenagers benefit from weekend workshops aimed at
deciphering admission criteria
By Barbara Ortutay
Daily Bruin Contributor
Mixing entertainment and education, the African Student Union
(ASU) focused its first high school conference Saturday on
encouraging local African American teenagers to attend college.
The event drew 500 students from Los Angeles area high
schools.
Instead of preaching from a podium for endless hours, speakers
and workshops provided valuable academic information and raised
awareness about societal issues.
"It’s important that students have the opportunity to come,
especially in light of Prop. 209," said Zuhariah Scott, Academic
Affairs Commissioner elect and the event’s co-chair. She added that
an event like this would be valuable even if affirmative action was
still a policy.
Laura Byrd, a teacher from Morningside High School in Inglewood,
said that the event provided valuable information for her
students.
"It’s important to get (students) focused on a clear path," she
said.
The event began early Saturday morning, with entertainment by
the UCLA Gospel Choir and African dance performers. Around 9:50
a.m., keynote speaker Mandla Kayise, assistant director of the
Community Programs Office, took the stage and spoke about the
challenges facing the African American community, past and present,
and the importance of coming together to overcome these
challenges.
"UCLA is in a historical storm right now," he said, referring to
Prop. 209 and its effects on minority access to education.
"I don’t think there has been any doubt in our mind that
education is key," he added
Emphasizing the need for higher education in the African
American community, organizers stressed the importance of high
school students being able to experience UCLA firsthand.
"I never came up to campus (as a high school student). Not all
students see the opportunity," said Scott. She added that often
students are grouped according to GPAs, and those with lower grades
only visit state and community colleges, not getting the
opportunity to aim for schools like UCLA.
Along with academic resources, the conference also raised
consciousness about black history, in the context of UCLA and
beyond. A slide show provided students with the past and present of
ASU at UCLA.
The history lesson tracked the roots of the organization and
continued to present-day, when organizers showed video footage from
the recent Days of Defiance protests. ASU chair Chad Williams also
explained the day of silence many African American students took
part in after the release of the 1998 admissions statistics last
month.
"I learned a lot about black history and ASU, and it’s
encouraging me to come here," said Erica Scott, from Inglewood High
School. "And I know what courses I need to take, even though I’m
taking a lot of them already."
The information about courses and the admissions process was
offered by two of UCLA’s academic advisors.
Many students were concerned about the UC system’s course
requirements, known as the A-F requirements. With more and more
students applying to college and increasing competition, students
were encouraged to take as many math, science and AP classes as
possible, and to attend community colleges in the summer. Speakers
also emphasized the need for an early start in preparation for
college.
Fun in the sun was mixed with valuable resources during lunch
break, where organizers raffled CDs and T-shirts, as well as
scholarship books and an AP calculus book. A college fair, with
representatives from local and state colleges, as well as various
professions also gave students an opportunity to set goals of their
future.
The day continued with a wide variety of social and educational
workshops, ranging from "Women on Top," a workshop about female
empowerment and the position of African American women in society,
to "Can You Handle It," a workshop geared towards preparing
students for college life.
ASU Vice Chair Dana Evans held the workshop on feminism and
sexuality. Evans spoke openly and honestly about sex, without the
traditional "Just say no" attitude. The workshop also dealt with
stereotypes about feminism and about African American women’s role
in society.
After the workshops, a student panel and more entertainment from
a local hip-hop artist ended the day.
The conference was a result of months of planning and organizing
that began fall quarter.
"They are our future," said Kayise of the high school
students.