11:30 am – 12:45 pm

What Does Common Core Mean for English Language Learners?
Moderated by CHCI Secondary Education Graduate Fellow Norma Salazar-Ibarra
Featuring Rep. Raul Grijalva

The implementation of Common Core Standards by 45 states and the District of Columbia will mean that students will be held to higher standards in English and math. The implementation of high standards seeks to prepare all students to be better equipped to pursue higher education and/ or enter the workforce. Currently, 9.8% of students attending public schools in the United States participate in English Language Learners (ELL) programs and 80% are Latino. Research suggests that 18.7% of ELLs currently perform academically above the norm and roughly 10% of ELLs in grades 7-12 are retained. As public schools begin to adopt the Common Core State Standards, it is imperative that we explore the impact they will have on ELL students. This panel will examine the impact of the implementation of Common Core State Standards on the educational outcomes of English Language Learners.

12:45 pm – 1:30 pm

Lunch

1:45 pm – 3:00 pm

Well-being y Bienestar: Innovation in School-Based Nutrition Programs in Order to Battle Latino Childhood Obesity
Moderated by CHCI-PepsiCo Foundation Health Graduate Fellow Daphne Delgado
Featuring Rep. Lucille Roybal-Allard

Federal-level nutrition policies, specifically the National School Lunch Program (NSLP), give states the resources to provide meals to needy children during the school day. Despite these resources, children have a hard time eating healthy meals at school and too many children, especially Latino youth, are overweight or obese. Since more than 35 percent of children’s and adolescents’ daily caloric intake happens during the school day, childhood nutrition programs are incredibly influential in a child’s overall health. This summit will bring together experts who can discuss current school-based and culturally-appropriate innovations, models, and strategies aimed at reducing childhood obesity.

3:15 pm – 4:30 pm

Addressing the Detention System as a Step Towards Meaningful Immigration Reform
Moderated by CHCI Law Graduate Fellow Carolina Rizzo
Featuring Reps. Luis Gutierrez and Ted Deutch

According to a recent study by the Pew Research Center, most Americans—regardless of their political affiliation—agree that the immigration system should be reformed. However, there is no consensus as to the magnitude of the change needed or the key features that a functional immigration system should include. One of the issues that immigration reform should address is the current detention policy employed by the United States. Immigration detention has become the fastest growing detention system in the United States with deportations reaching record levels of approximately 400,000 per year. This summit will bring together experts who can discuss and offer solutions to current issues in the immigration detention system, including detention conditions, spending on immigration detention and the DHS detention bed quota, Alternatives to detention programs, and the use of detention as a primary tool for immigration law enforcement.

11:30 am – 12:45 pm

Housing Finance Reform and the Future of the Latino Homeowner
Moderated by CHCI Housing Graduate Fellow Scott Astrada
Featuring Rep. Tony Cárdenas

The housing market has been on a slow and steady path of recovery, defined by decreased foreclosure rates and rising housing prices. This recovery, while moving forward, is at the cross roads for reform. The Government Sponsored Enterprises (GSEs) are in conservatorship, funneling money to the U.S. Treasury, but their place as government guarantors is still ambiguous, which is the single most determinant to housing market stability and investment. Congress has significant decisions to make. A new system could provide credit to a broad and diverse population, offer safe investment opportunities to a wide range of investors, and result in a larger, more stable housing market; or alternatively, it could create an environment in which credit and housing choices are more costly, more limited, and less sustainable, especially for minority and low- and moderate-income households, and where there are fewer opportunities for investors who do not seek credit risk.

12:45 pm – 1:30 pm

Lunch

1:45 pm – 3:00 pm

Latino Homeownership and Housing Counseling: An Alternative to FHA Lending Policies
Moderated by CHCI Housing Graduate Fellow Lissette Flores

This panel will discuss recent policy changes that could prove to be detrimental to low-income Latino homeowners as well as future homebuyers. Recently, the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) changed its lending policies to increase its insurance fund, which plummeted when the housing market crashed. Because of the policy changes, many low-income Latino families will no longer qualify for FHA-backed loans. Rather than increase access to homeownership, the FHA’s new policy is hindering the process, making homeownership nearly impossible. By requiring higher down-payments, scrutinizing credit scores, and charging higher up-front and monthly insurance premiums, the FHA is hindering the ability for families to purchase homes. An important way for FHA to assist homebuyers is by providing mandatory housing counseling. Research shows that homeowners who receive pre-purchase counseling are less likely to default on their loans, thus benefiting families, lenders and the FHA.

3:15 pm – 4:30 pm

Achieving First in the World: Hispanic Serving Institutions and Closing the Attainment Gap
Moderated by CHCI Higher Education Graduate Fellow Brenda Calderon
Featuring Rep. Rubén Hinojosa, CHCI Chair

In 2012, Latinos outnumbered their white counterparts in college enrollment. Despite the increasing number of Latino students entering higher education, completion rates are still far below other subgroups. As Latino student enrollment continues to grow, a greater emphasis on student retention and completion can aid in college degree attainment. The greatest share of this undergraduate enrollment is concentrated at Hispanic Serving Institutions (HSIs). Designated Hispanic Serving Institutions are defined as institutions of higher education that have a 25% enrollment of Hispanic students and also meet the requirement of having a 50% enrollment of needy students (Pell eligible). Panelists will discuss the changing landscape of Latinos in higher education with a focus on building capacity at HSIs for Latino student college completion.  

11:30 am – 12:45 pm

The Future of Energy: Making the Renewable Fuel Standard Work for all Americans
Moderated by CHCI-Shell STEM Graduate Fellow Wesley Brooks

The Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) was designed to stimulate the growth of domestically-produced and renewable alternatives to petroleum-derived transportation fuels. Given recent large-scale shifts of both global energy markets and the population demographics of the United States, it may be time for policymakers to re-evaluate the current RFS’ suitability for meeting long-term U.S. energy policy goals, and its sustainability in promoting equitable outcomes for a diversifying population. In particular, Hispanics, as the fastest growing demographic group in the United States, may have substantial interest in any new policy changes to improve the economic and employment benefits, and relieve the purported food price increases, attributable to the RFS. 

1:45 pm – 3:00 pm

Towards a Clean and Sustainable Future: Green Technologies, Restoration and Management of Contaminated Sites
Moderated by CHCI-API STEM Graduate Fellow Elizabeth Padilla-Crespo
Featuring Rep. Ben Ray Luján

Poor handling and disposal of hazardous substances has left a legacy of contamination in sites all across the U.S. that affect human and ecosystem welfare. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) addresses these contaminated sites under the Comprehensive Environmental Response Compensation and Liability Act (CERCLA) commonly known as the “Superfund Program.”  The management and cleanup of these impacted areas is a matter of national security and environmental justice as it is estimated that one in four Americans live near a Superfund site and that minorities, particularly Hispanics, are more likely to live near affected areas. This policy summit will discuss how green sustainable approaches, including bioremediation, represent feasible and attractive cleanup methods to treat these locations. It will also review the efforts that agencies are developing to incorporate sustainable remediation in their decision making process.