Mexican American Studies (MAS) Teachers' Academy — Happening Next Week!

Teachers, There should still be time for you to consider this event, the annual Mexican American Studies (MAS) Teachers' Academy out of the University of Texas San Antonio happening next week!

-Angela Valenzuela

#EthnicStudiesNow
#MexicanAmericanStudies

BUILDING UP MEXICAN AMERICAN STUDIES WITH LILLIANA SALDAÑA & VANESSA SANDOVAL

Friends,

Happy Friday!  I'm happy to share this interview of Dr. Lilliana Saldaña and Vanessa Sandoval from a podcast named "Visions of Education."  Scroll down to the bottom to get classroom resources.  I loved hearing the excitement in their voices as they told both the story and their story.

I have said previously elsewhere that we do not yet have the historiography of when what we know today as the field of "Mexican American Studies (MAS)" got started.  The historical record, I predict, will show that albeit under other names, MAS has probably existed as long as we have lived as a people in Texas after the Mexican-American War (1846-1848).  And it has existed as a way  to combat and  cope with systemic forms of oppression to which Dr. Saldaña and Vanessa give voice.

I just read this just-published April 26, 2019 article that appears in the Journal of Latinos and Education titled, “No Había Bilingual Education:” Stories of Negotiation, Educación, y Sacrificios from South Texas Escuelitas by Enrique David Degollado,Randy Clinton Bell, & Cinthia S. Salinas from the Universityof Texas at Austin.

I am on David's and Randy's doctoral dissertation committees and David defends his doctoral dissertation soon.  Dr. Salinas is a colleague of mine in the College of Education at UT.  

Great work, everybody!  We are making progress!  I will quote my good friend Tony Baez who expresses with wisdom, "The best curriculum is written in times of struggle."

Pa 'lante!  Onward! Sí se puede!  Yes we can!

Angela Valenzuela

In Episode 113, Michael and Dan talk with Dr. Lilliana Saldaña and Vanessa Sandoval about their (and the larger efforts) to create a Mexican American Studies course approved by the Texas State Board of Education.

https://visionsofed.com/2019/04/25/episode-113-building-up-mexicanamerican-studies-with-lilliana-saldana-and-vanessa-sandoval/

Books, Articles and Other Amazing Resources

1. 1. More on the ‘Reject the Text’ movement The Scholarly Reviews are in on that ‘Deeply Offensive’ Mex-Am Studies Text from The Texas Observer
   2. Interested in learning more about about attending professional development this summer? Check out MAS Social Studies Teachers’ Academy!
   3. Some mentioned resources from the episode
      1. http://education.utsa.edu/mas/social_studies_teachers_academy/
      2.  https://mastxeducation.com/
   4. Here are flyers and images from the MAS Teachers’ Academy and the movement that Dr. Saldaña and Vanessa shared with us!
   5. Stolen Education film.  Dan talked about Stolen Education which documents the untold story of Mexican-American school children who challenged discrimination in Texas schools in the 1950’s and changed the face of education in the Southwest.
   
   

Biographies

Vanessa Sandoval is a UTSA undergraduate and a first generation student with a concentration in Education and Human Development. Her research interest focuses on cross- disciplinary and interdisciplinary understandings of K-12 schooling experiences for Mexican American students, especially as these relate to curriculum.

Lilliana Patricia Saldaña is a Chicana activist scholar raised in San Antonio’s Southside. Saldaña attended Boston University where she earned her bachelor’s degree in English and International Relations, with a concentration in Latin American Studies and a minor in Journalism in 1998. Shortly after completing her studies, Saldaña worked at a dual-language school in San Antonio’s Westside and earned a master’s degree in Bicultural-Bilingual Studies from the University of Texas at San Antonio in 2002. During her undergraduate and graduate studies, she was involved in numerous campus-activist projects and worked in community settings, synthesizing her passion for research and social change. As a doctoral student at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, Saldaña worked with Latina/o families to establish Nuestro Mundo, the first dual-language school in the city, and Formando Lazos, community development project with Latina immigrant mothers. She earned a doctoral degree in Human Development and Family Studies, with a minor in Chicana/o families, schools, and communities, from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 2010. Her dissertation—“¡De mi barrio no me voy!: The identity and consciousness of Mexican American teachers at a dual-language school—examines the life histories of Raza teachers and the ways in which they transform, negotiate and reproduce the culture of schooling in San Antonio, Texas.

UTSA faculty help local educators create Mexican-American Studies curriculum

UTSA faculty help local educators create Mexican-American Studies curriculum

(June 25, 2018) - Faculty in The University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA) Department of Bicultural-Bilingual Studies and Mexican American Studies Program are sharing their expertise with local teachers who are creating history and fine arts curriculum focused on Chicano/Mexican American content.

In its fourth year, the weeklong Mexican American Studies Social Studies and Literature Teachers’ Academy takes place this week at the UTSA Institute of Texan Cultures. During the academy, middle and high school teachers will work on their professional development skills and learn about best teaching practices in the field of Mexican American Studies from renowned faculty in the UTSA College of Education and Human Development.

Marie “Keta” Miranda, professor of Bicultural-Bilingual studies, has helped organize the annual academy along with other UTSA faculty and students since 2015. Miranda said more than 20 teachers from San Antonio and other cities in Texas are expected to participate in this year’s program.

During the sessions, educators will learn about historical events that shaped Mexican Americans as a bicultural community and the Mexican American experience in Texas. They will also receive an overview of state curriculum materials and resources that meet the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS) criteria.

“Our goal is to provide teachers with a toolkit to help them create enriching courses that engage students as they learn about history, diversity, culture and the Mexican American experience in Texas,” said Miranda.

Incorporating Mexican American Studies (MAS) in curriculums statewide has been a heated topic for years. This spring, the Texas Board of Education approved a K-12 Mexican American studies elective course, creating state-wide standards for the curriculum. MAS courses are increasingly being offered by school districts across the state.

“Each year, we get a lot of good feedback from the teachers saying they learned something new and feel prepared to go into the classroom and share that knowledge with their students,” said Miranda. “COEHD faculty want to make sure the educators are comfortable with teaching the material, and we plan to work with many of them throughout the year as they carry out the curriculum.”

This year’s academy will be hosted at the UTSA Institute of Texan Cultures from June 25-29. Teachers who participate will take a tour to explore classroom resources inspired by the ITC’s newest exhibit, Los Tejanos.

As a learning and research enterprise, UTSA fosters innovation and creative discovery by channeling its expertise into tackling critical societal issues of today and tomorrow. The UTSA College of Education and Human Development produces educators, administrators, counselors and health professionals with a global perspective of the educational, psychological, social and health needs of communities. 

The university is ranked among the nation’s top five young universities, according to Times Higher Education.

- Kara Soria

---

Learn more about the Mexican American Studies Social Studies and Literature Teachers’ Academy.

Learn more about UTSA’s Mexican American Studies Program.

Learn more about the UTSA College of Education and Human Development.

Connect with UTSA online at Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Instagram and LinkedIn.

Honored to be delivering a talk shortly at the Inaugural Freire Institute for Urban School Leaders

Thanks, Dr. Enrique Alemán for the invitation in San Antonio this Wednesday.  Looking forward to this.
-Angela

Freire Institute for Urban School Leaders
Day	Wednesday, June 27, 2018
Time	1:00pm - 7:00pm
Location	River Walk Conference Rm - DB 1.124A
Description
Contact	De Leon (R25), Mia
Phone Number	(210)458-2409
Organization	Downtown Special Events Office

ANNOUNCEMENT: Mexican American Studies Social Studies Teachers' Academy-San Antonio, June 20-24, 2016

UTSA’s Institute of Texan Cultures
801 East Cesar E. Chavez Blvd.