We have fun, and get things done AtascaderoDemocraticClub.org@gmail.com
Call 805-434-0270 or
email Dan Cook dtcook@sbcglobal.net
Meetings 3rd Thur monthly, 630 pm, Atas Library
FB = AtascaderoDems
Call 805-434-0270 or
email Dan Cook dtcook@sbcglobal.net
Meetings 3rd Thur monthly, 630 pm, Atas Library
FB = AtascaderoDems
Our plan is to have a dynamic selection of speakers, focusing on local topics of interest. Question/Answer time with speakers is encouraged. In person with Zoom alternative when possible.
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3/18/2024
Friends,
Our next ADC meeting will be this coming Thurs, 630 pm upstairs at the Library. Our new organizer of speakers, Gordon Fuglie, continues his eclectic and informative series of speakers with a talk by Prof. Mario Espinoza-Kulik, who will speak on the new state-mandated Ethnic Studies classes that will be introduced this Fall at AHS. I'm sure this will lead to a much-animated discussion between all parties, and for more info please see his bio to follow.
Our ADC is also supporting qualified school board candidates, and there is an opening in the Templeton School District (one person just resigned). Matt Allison is one of 7 candidates seeking an appointment to this opening, and we are supporting him. Since this is a separate situation, I'll provide more info on him in a separate email tomorrow.
Thanks to all,Dan
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Who’s Afraid of California’s Ethnic Studies Mandate for Colleges and High Schools?
On Thursday, March 21, 7 PM, the Atascadero Democratic Club (ADC) will host Prof. Mario Espinoza-Kulick, PhD, in the Martin Polin Community Room, on the second floor of the Atascadero Public Library. Mario will introduce the new ethnic studies course that recently became a state requirement for students pursuing an associate degree at California’s community colleges. This Fall he will be teaching this course for the first time at Atascadero High School where students can fulfill a general education college requirement. Since 2021 Mario has been an Ethnic Studies Instructor at Cuesta College and is a Community College Faculty Fellow of the Mellon/American Council of Learned Societies.
In 2020, California inaugurated a higher education policy that required students to take a three-unit semester or four-unit quarter class in either African American studies, Asian American studies, Latinx/Latino studies or Native American studies. These courses will count toward students’ general education college requirements. Starting with the class of 2030, California high school students will be required to pass an ethnic studies class to graduate.
According to educators backing the course, ethnic studies courses help students understand the multitude of human experiences within American society, helping them see that the American experience is not a singularity, that it has always been diverse. Moreover, ethnic studies courses are structured to overcome persisting historical stereotypes, enabling students to recognize the complexity of the United States, from pre-colonial times to the present.
Since the proposal of the state-mandated course, a number of groups have criticized the course as being “too political,”or “biased,” causing it to undergo a series of revisions. The ADC encourages attendees to the March 21 presentation to participate in the Q&A following Mario’s presentation.
Mario Espinoza-Kulick was born in Modesto, and raised in an immigrant and Indigenous family. He earned a BA in Comparative Ethnic Studies from California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo in 2016. He went on to earn his MA and PhD in Sociology from the University of California, Santa Barbara in 2018 and 2021. Mario co-hosts the topical radio program Central Coast Voices, heard every Thursday afternoon on KCBX-FM from 1:00-2:00 p.m.
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Atascadero Democratic Club -
Speaker for Feb 22 meeting (note, this meeting has been postponed to this date as Susan had a conflicting event this Thur 15th)20
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People’s Self-Help Housing leader Gillian Cole-Andrews to speak at the February 22 meeting of the Atascadero Democratic Club at 7 PM.
The public is invited to this non-partisan educational presentation on the Central Coast housing crisis in the Martin Polin Community Room, second floor of the Atascadero Public Library, 6555 Capistrano Ave.
Cole-Andrews is Director of Public Affairs for People’s Self-Help Housing (PSHH), San Luis Obispo (pshhc.org). She will address the current critical shortage of housing in San Luis Obispo County and the role of PSHH in relieving this basic human need.
With offices in San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara, and Oxnard, PSHH has championed homeownership and housing on the Central Coast since 1970. To date, the regional non-profit has helped over 1,200 households build a firm foundation for their lives. From apartments to townhomes, studios to houses, PSHH builds affordable housing for families, seniors, veterans, those living with disabilities, and people transitioning out of homelessness. In addition to providing rental housing, PSHH champions homeownership opportunities through the self-build model.
As Director of Public Affairs, Gillian Cole-Andrews guides her department in promoting the development and preservation of affordable housing in one of California’s more expensive real estate regions.
Educated in England at Plymouth University and at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst, Cole-Andrews’s career has seen her serving both the British and United States governments in Europe and the Middle East. In addition, Gillian volunteers with women-led microenterprises and spends her free time gardening, preserving and fermenting foods, and sewing vintage style aprons. She lives in Atascadero.
For further information, contact Gordon L. Fuglie: gfuglie@gmail.com.
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