The admissions minority recruitment effort is getting a boost in the College's own backyard thanks to a group of Union students who love music and free food.
“All I had to do was tell the students there would be music and food, and we had 25 signed up,” said Elissa Gonzalez '98, who coordinated the students' participation in the recent Latino Festival in the city. The event — a block party of sorts — was
sponsored by the Latin Coalition and the Center for Progression.
Gonzalez, president of CELA (Circulo Estudiant¡l Latino Americano) and a minority recruitment assistant who works closely with Assistant Dean of Admissions Darryl
Tiggle, assistant dean in the Office of Admissions, said she learned of the event from
Assistant Dean of Students Edgar Letriz. “I thought, 'We strive for more diversity on
this campus, and no place is more diverse than Schenectady.'”
CELA, with support from various College offices, also provided a tent in case of rain;
the event had been postponed a week earlier due to weather, Gonzalez said.
“When all those Union students arrived in two vans, everyone's jaws just
dropped,” recalled Gonzalez. “These are people who thought Union was out of
reach, and now some of them are thinking, 'Wow, I can go to Union.'”
“It was obvious that these people didn't think that Union was an option or that
there were people like them at Union,” said Tiggle, who also attended.
Last weekend, members of CELA and ALAS (African and Latino Alliance of Students)
recruited more prospective students when they attended a conference on jobs, housing and
business sponsored by the Schenectady chapter of the NAACP and other organizations at the
Martin Luther King School.
Gonzalez says CELA members are planning to host prospective students from Schenectady
for overnight stays in conjunction with open houses this fall.
Gonzalez, of Rotterdam, is pursuing an interdepartmental major in psychology and
sociology with a minor in Spanish.