Saturday, June 26, 2021

Testimony for the Texas Top Ten Percent Plan & Against SB 1091 by Dr. Altheria Caldera & Luis Figueroa

Listen to these gems of testimonies delivered before the Texas Senate Higher Education Committee on April 28, 202 this past legislative session. The session is always such a rush that I'm finally posting this.

These are two public testimonies against Senate Bill 1091 that sought to drastically limit the Top Ten Percent Admissions of graduating high school students into our state's higher education system, a policy that in its present form, is critical to rural students, as well as students of color to gain college access. 

In the first video, you can listen to a passionate and resolute Dr. Altheria Caldera, a Policy Fellow at the Intercultural Development Institute (IDRA) and mentee of mine who provides clear reasons and data that point to a need to maintain Texas' Top Ten Percent Plan in higher education admission.  Next, treat yourself to historically accurate and incisive testimony by Luis Figueroa, J.D., Legislative and Policy Director at Every Texan. These were among the more powerful testimonies that contributed to the bill's demise. 

Hats off to Dr. Caldera, as well, for recently securing a tenure-track position at Howard University in Washington, D.C. We'll miss you here in Texas, but know that there's good and important work to get done there, as well. 

I post this as it's important for us to maintain this historical memory on the ongoing struggle over higher education admissions in the state of Texas. I myself and many others were involved in this at an earlier time. It's cool to see how the baton gets passed from one generation to the next over time.

Altheria and Luis, thanks for advancing the cause for equity in college admission in the state of Texas.
 
Y'all make us proud! 

-Angela Valenzuela

No comments:

Post a Comment