ReportWire

Tag: Empowerment through Education

  • Avanza Reconvenes in El Paso to Promote Higher Education

    Avanza Reconvenes in El Paso to Promote Higher Education

    Avanza Network to Hold 9th Annual Conference as Hispanic Heritage Month Kicks Off – MIT Alumni group to visit over 25 High Schools in Underserved Communities


    EL PASO, Texas, September 17, 2024 (Newswire.com)
    –
    After a five-year hiatus brought on by the pandemic, the Avanza Network (“Avanza”) organization will gather in El Paso this year for its annual conference beginning Wednesday, September 18, and through Sunday, September 22. The gathering brings together MIT Mexican-American alumni and friends from throughout the U.S. to promote higher education through school visits featuring inspirational stories told by the group’s members. As in past conferences, Avanza also plans to meet with students and their parents in an informal Q&A session held at the University of Texas El Paso. Since its formation in 2011, the group has reached out to and inspired thousands of high school students in cities across the country. 

    “It is more important now than ever to continue to inspire our youth, particularly those in poor, underprivileged communities similar to the ones many of us grew up in,” stated Jacob Rael, Co-President of Avanza. “Getting in front of kids and showing them that Si Se Puede is sometimes the spark that they need to make them realize anything is possible with hard work, determination and an education.”

    “And now that universities have changed their admissions policies after the recent Supreme Court decision against Affirmative Action, it’s crucial that these kids aim high and start to prepare for a higher education early on,” adds Eddie Grado, Co-President of Avanza. “These kids have the grit and smarts to accomplish anything they set their minds to.”

    Avanza will also be distributing copies of its Avanza books to schools as part of its annual conference. Avanza has two volumes to its book and both are a compilation of inspiring true stories of several Avanza members and their diverse paths towards a higher education and successful careers. The books are available online at https://bookstore.weeva.com/search?q=avanza. 

    Avanza Network is a national organization founded by M.I.T. (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) Mexican-American alumni and friends who are dedicated to the empowerment and advancement of current and aspiring Mexican-American professionals and members of underserved communities. Through its grass-roots efforts, Avanza stimulates Mexican-Americans and underserved communities to achieve full potential by increasing awareness of the transformational power of a college education, increasing college graduation rates for these groups, emphasizing the benefits of diverse career paths, highlighting the key benefits of STEM careers, and cultivating the group’s pipeline of talent through the professional development lifecycle.

    For more information on its grass-root outreach efforts, the college application process or other tools for college-bound students, please visit www.avanzanetwork.org or follow MIT Avanza on Facebook and LinkedIn. 

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    Media Contact:

    Rene Gonzalez

    Director of Communications

    Avanza Network

    512-809-0863

    renegade@alum.mit.edu

    Source: Avanza Network

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  • Avanza Network Reconvenes in San Antonio to Promote Higher Education

    Avanza Network Reconvenes in San Antonio to Promote Higher Education

    Group Visiting over 20 High Schools in Underrepresented Communities to Emphasize the Importance of a Higher Education

    Press Release
    –


    updated: Oct 18, 2018


    SAN ANTONIO, October 18, 2018 (Newswire.com)
    –
     In what is expected to be its largest effort yet, the Avanza Network (“Avanza”) is holding its annual conference and community outreach event from Oct. 18-21, 2018 in San Antonio, Texas, bringing together MIT Latino alumni and friends from across the country to once again promote higher education to students and their parents, focused primarily on economically depressed or underrepresented communities. The group of volunteers consists of a diverse range of professionals, including engineers, doctors, educators, entrepreneurs, politicians, and scientists that plan to visit with thousands of students across over 20 high schools. Since its formation in 2011, the group has reached out to and inspired thousands of high school students in cities across the country. In recognition of Avanza’s outreach efforts, MIT just awarded the MIT Great Dome award to the group at its annual Alumni Leadership Conference in September 2018 in Cambridge, Massachusetts. 

    “Most of Avanza’s members grew up in low-income, underserved communities.  But we managed to overcome tremendous challenges and go to world-class universities like MIT. In effect, overcoming these complex situations equipped us with the determination necessary to tackle the immense challenges we face today.  But we didn’t do this alone,” says Marisa Zepeda, head of Avanza’s School Outreach Efforts. “We each had at least one person who inspired us, who pushed us to work hard and aim high. We graduated from college thanks to those who came before us and opened the door. It’s now on us to keep that door open.”

    Avanza’s mission of reaching out to students and conveying the transformational power of a college education is so important, now more than ever. Through our stories, we are telling these kids that regardless of your socio-economic status, with hard work and dedication, a college education is absolutely possible. We aim to inspire today’s youth to arm themselves with one thing that levels the playing field, a higher education.

    Ana Sandoval, San Antonio Councilwoman and Avanza Member

    “Avanza’s mission of reaching out to students and conveying the transformational power of a college education is so important, now more than ever,” says San Antonio Councilwoman Ana Sandoval. “Through our stories, we are telling these kids that regardless of your socio-economic status, with hard work and dedication, a college education is absolutely possible. We aim to inspire today’s youth to arm themselves with one thing that levels the playing field, a higher education.”

    In addition to meeting with students, Avanza members also will meet with local educators and the press to partner in the group’s goal of increasing college attendance and college graduation rates within the Latino and underserved populations.

    Each school visited will receive volume 1 of the Avanza book, “The Transformational Power of an Education.” The book is a compilation of inspiring life stories of several Avanza members and their diverse paths towards a higher education and successful career. The book is available online at bookstore.weeva.com/products/Avanza.

    Avanza Network is fiscally sponsored by FJC, a 501c3 public charity, and was founded by MIT Mexican-American alumni and friends who are dedicated to the empowerment and advancement of current and aspiring Latino professionals and members of underserved communities. Through its grass-roots efforts, Avanza stimulates Latino and underserved communities to achieve full potential by raising awareness of the transformational power of a college education, increasing college graduation rates for these groups, emphasizing the benefits of diverse career paths, highlighting the key benefits of STEAM careers, and cultivating the group’s pipeline of talent through the professional development lifecycle.

    For more information on its grass-roots outreach efforts, the college application process, or other tools for college-bound students, visit www.avanzanetwork.org or follow MIT Avanza on Facebook and LinkedIn.

    Media Contact:

    Rene Gonzalez

    Director of Communications

    Avanza Network

    512-809-0863

    renegade@alum.mit.edu

    Source: Avanza Network

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