Allan Hancock College’s Mathematics, Engineering, Science Achievement (MESA) program was recently recognized for its efforts to help Latino students succeed.Allan Hancock College’s MESA program demonstrates ‘Excelencia in Education’
Excelencia in Education—a national organization that identifies programs and departments that boost Latino enrollment, performance, and graduation rates—recently named MESA as a semifinalist winner for its ¡Examples of Excelencia! program.
MESA provides academic support and professional development opportunities to financially and educationally disadvantaged students interested in pursuing university degrees in math-based majors—such as engineering and the physical and biological sciences and, of course, mathematics—according to a press release from the college.
In 2008, the college saw an all-time enrollment high of 94 students in the MESA program—approximately 73 percent of which were Latino, MESA director Julie Castillo said in the release.
Recently, six former Allan Hancock College MESA students competed in the Society for Hispanic Professional Engineers Design Competition as part of two teams representing San Luis Obispo’s Cal Poly at the finals in Mesa, Ariz.
One team, dubbed Stir Tech, designed a prototype of a powerful Stirling engine that could be used to power machines on the moon. The other team, the Lunar Emergency Protective Shelter PROJECT, created a shelter to protect against micrometeorites, solar winds, and other hazards. NASA sponsored the contest this year.
“It’s challenging, it’s rough, but it’s well worth it in the end,” Stir Tech team member Robert Peralta said in the release. “MESA gave us experience with helping each other out, not just on a certain subject, but with different classes.”
As part of its semifinalist designation, the MESA program will be included in the 2008 edition of the What Works for Latino Students: Examples of Excelencia publication, distributed to educational organizations and policy leaders across the United States, according to the MESA statewide office.
For more information, contact Castillo at 922-6966, Ext. 3348.
School Scene is compiled by Staff Writer Amy Asman. Information should be sent to the Sun via fax, e-mail, or mail.
This article appears in Dec 11-18, 2008.
