"I don't think students realize how powerful they are, and I want them to realize that," Garcia said.
Leadership program seeks aid
Hispanic organization's local chapter once had 90 students
By Adriana Garza Caller-Times
January 29, 2007
Throughout eight years as program adviser to the National Hispanic Institute, Rene Vela can rattle off the names of dozens of students he has mentored and the colleges they graduated from.
Javier Longoria, Harvard University; Theresita Perez, Stanford University; and Sarah Villarreal, Cornell University, are a few of the students Vela, a local dentist, boasts as alumni of the program he says is key to their success.
"These are kids that have potential and this brings them together to push each other to become successful," said Vela, who has returned as the local program's adviser after a two-year absence.
Recruitment meeting
# When: 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m., Feb. 8
# Where: Retama Room of the Harvin Center at Del Mar College East Campus
# What: A meeting with area students interested in joining the National Hispanic Institute
About nhi
95 percent of National Hispanic Institute alumni enroll in four-year colleges after graduation
About 90 percent of National Hispanic Institute alumni receive their undergraduate degree in four to five years
About 66 percent of National Hispanic Institute alumni plan to pursue graduate studies
SOURCE: National Hispanic Institute
Student membership in the program has dwindled in recent years and Vela, who once had more than 90 students participating in the program, hopes to recruit more students than ever this year.
The National Hispanic Institute was established in 1981 to train young Latino students in the skills necessary to lead the Latino community.
It provides high school students leadership training that prepares them for college life and beyond. For a $425 fee, members are able to participate in conferences and tournaments that help shape oratory and debate skills and expose students to the college admissions process.
Students are encouraged to produce original ideas and debate specific topics, such as education and economics and their impact on the future of the Latino community.
Based on each student's skills, the institute's teams are divided into different debate categories including Mock Trial Debate, Cross Examination Debate, Oratory and Extemporaneous Speaking.
The organization's Youth Leadership Conference is held every year at a college campus and allows teams to participate in the Great Debates, a tournament that lets them show off their debating skills. About 1,800 students from across the country participate in the conference each year.
Vela said the communications skills students learn in the program teach students a variety of skills, from maintaining eye contact to thinking quickly on their feet.
Kara Hernandez, a junior at Carroll High School and leader in the local National Hispanic Institute chapter, said the program also gives students confidence, which helps improve the way they carry themselves.
"It helps you have a presence in the room," she said, adding that the organization is a natural fit for ambitious students who want to do well in life.
The success of some of her peers who have gone on to Ivy League schools inspired Kara to continue with the program and motivate others to join.
"I have the expectation to go off to college and do something big with my life," said Kara, who plans to become a dentist.
It's a competitive and time-consuming program but Kara, who dedicates about five hours every Sunday to the program, said she wouldn't have it any other way.
The debate training has conditioned Kara's mind constantly to produce new ideas. Months after the Great Debates, Hernandez continued to come up with ideas and arguments for her debate topic.
"I was in the shower once and it just came to me, three months after (the Great Debates)," she said.
Vela said the $425 membership fee, which helps pay for supplies and facilities, shouldn't discourage parents from signing their children up for the program.
"It's an investment," Vela said.
Interested students from across South Texas with an A-B grade average are invited to apply for the program.
Vela said he hopes to receive funds from local school districts to help defray membership cost.
"We will help everybody," Kara said. "We'll fundraise, we'll do whatever we have to."
Vela said he wants the organization to provide all students in the community with a chance to grow into leaders.
"All I'm about is giving people an opportunity," he said.
Contact Adriana Garza at 886-3618 or garzaa@ caller.com
