For 25% of the university’s students, Hispanic Heritage Month, which ended last week, was more than a festival. It was a chance to feel at home.
Many Latino students do not feel connected to their families’ native countries – and do not entirely feel like they belong here.
“Some are more Americanized,” said Galilea Valasquez, a member of Alpha Psi Lambda, a co-ed fraternity that promotes Latino culture. “When you go to Mexico, you’re not Mexican enough … and you
don’t fit in … and when you’re here you’re not American enough.”
Hispanic Heritage Month gives students whose families come from many Latino countries a
chance to celebrate their differences together.
The month-long celebration is uniquely important to PNW which, for the second year in a row, is Indiana’s largest Hispanic-serving institution.
That means Hispanics officially make up at least 25% of the university’s student body. Many of those students have a shared experience of being children of immigrant parents.
“There are people like me who [are] living the same experience,” Valasquez said. “We feel represented.
“Our parents … went through a lot of hardships,” said Velasquez.
The Hispanic-Serving Institution designation from the U.S. Department of Education aims to help Hispanic and other students overcome those hardships. PNW expects to be officially designated a Hispanic-serving institution in the coming months. That will make the university eligible for millions of dollars in extra funding.
“These grants will … be an investment in the university as well as the community,” said Iris Eunice Sanchez, director of PNW’s Hispanic Serving Institution initiatives. “Funding will be used to bring more Northwest Indiana’s young adults to PNW’s campus.
“Funds will be allocated to STEM research, nursing, and engineering or any program or scholarship that serves the best interest of all students,” she said.
The extra funding will also underwrite initiatives to improve student retention and graduation, according to Sanchez.
“Studies show that when Hispanic students thrive, all minority students strive,” Sanchez said. “This will help to close the equity gap for minorities.”
Meanwhile, the month-long Hispanic Heritage activities are designed to build a sense of connection for Hispanic students.
“It’s important as an emerging Hispanic-Serving Institution that we honour the heritage and culture of our students,” said Sanchez. “This celebration helps create a sense of belonging and gives these students representation on campus.
“Most of all, I hope everyone feels welcome,” she said.
Velasquez also hopes students feel pride during the celebrations and afterwards.
“We are all together,” she said. “It is noticed and respected.”