One of the main reasons why incoming freshmen do not receive orientation services during their first year in college at San Jose City College is because like most school in California, they are undergoing budge cuts that directly affect services that provide these orientations and they become limited to the incoming students. Another reason why these incoming student do not receive a freshmen orientation is because the high schools and the community college do not have a strong outreach system, which is why most students just apply and sign up for school without knowing that there are many programs that will help them throughout their community college journey. [This] happens to all community colleges simply because an orientation is not a mandatory or in some cases not even offered


Why is this trend reflective of mostly Latino high school graduates?

Most Latino students are first generation college students, whom most of the time have parents that are familiar with the higher education process.

What do the planned orientations and freshman workshops aim to accomplish and when will they take effect? How will these goals be achieved?

The orientations and freshmen workshops being planned now aim to educate the incoming students with the different charts they would have to follow in order to be accepted to a four year university, how to speed up the process of skipping pre-rec classes, showing them the many different programs the school provides for students, how to manage your time, and what councilors are available to help out with accomplishing their goals. As a school, many of the programs are collaborating together to reach-out to the local high schools to achieve these goal so that freshmen can sign up for orientations, we are using a hands-on and face-to-face approach.

What specific events triggered San Jose students to create this movement?

As students at San Jose City College many of us never got a freshmen orientation to guide us through college or to show us what classes we need to take, which took us longer to graduate because we where taking classes that where non-transferable or did not meet the areas that need to be took. We wanted to prepare the future generation of incoming students with essential information to be successful at the community college. We also wanted to cover this information with cultural ties so that students could be able to relate to the person giving them the information.


How will incoming freshmen and future generations benefit from FUERTE?

Fuerte provides a wide rage of workshops for all students to become familiar with the community college. We also share with them the importance of culture and identity which helps they know who they are and what they come from. we believe it gives Latino students the re-insurance of belonging in a institution that for many generation has been non-supportive to their needs and history. They would also be able to network with councilors, students, alumni, professors, and student services programs.

Why is it important for high school graduates to receive the guidance during their first year of college that FUERTE aims to provide? And what guidance does FUERTE seek to be provided at San Jose City College for incoming freshmen?

We believe it is important for incoming freshman to receive a Furete orientation because it sets them up with mentors whom go out their way to make sure the students are successful. All the information that is given to them the day of orientation is information they must know before starting off their first semester. that way they will know the steps they need to take to transfer out or receive an AA degree, and not wait until the last semester there and figure out that they needed to take another course which will set them back. The information we provide and workshops are essential for their journey in college.

Dana Shin is a Featured Blogger for Mobilize.org’s The Millennial Report. Sub-consciously, she has begun to build a strong sense of acceptance and true love of diversity and is most passionate about issues pertaining to immigration, human relations, and education. Shin believes that passion and courage can indeed lead to change.