The Padrinos de Bakersfield College Informational Session was held on Nov. 20, where the topic of discussion was on how to become a Padrino or Madrina.
According to the official BC Padrinos Facebook page, “Padrinos was created for mentorship and support opportunities between B.C. personnel (faculty, staff, administration) and Latinx students to help them overcome any obstacles or challenges in their higher educational path.”
According to Abel Guzman “through mentorship and support, encourage Latinx students to achieve higher retention at BC. To support Latinx personnel in their own personal and professional development through mentorship and support.”
Some of the histories behind the Padrinos de Bakersfield College came from the retired Dean of Instruction, Cornelio “Corny” Rodriguez, who was the founder of the Padrinos organization.
“Kern County’s Baccalaureate attainment is 16.1% compared to CA, which is 33.3%, and the U.S. 31.5%. Some Latinx Student Success Data from 2019-2020 64% of Latinx completers received an associate degree, 31% earned a certificate of achievement and 6% received a job skills certificate” Guzman said.
One of the guest speakers was Connie Perez Andreeson, the chief operating officer at the United Farm Workers Foundation. She was recently appointed to the United Farmworkers Board of Directors; she is a Board member for the Bakersfield College Foundation and was a graduate from the Community Colleges of California- Porterville College. She went on to discuss the importance of the BC Padrinos program and how these different types of organizations are important for community colleges.
This Informational Session was primarily for those adults who are existing professors, teachers, and counselors that want to commit to becoming a mentor such as a Padrino or Madrina towards an ahijado or ahijada, who are the students attending BC part of the Latinx community that needs resources and assistance during their time attending college.
The main Padrinos organization team includes Lily Pimentel-Stratton- child development, Victor Diaz, faculty/department chair- counseling, Olivia Garcia, faculty-history, Jessica Garcia, educational advisor, Vanessa Reyes, educational advisor, Consuelo Gonzalez, director- MESA Program, Jaime Lopez, program manager- Rural Initiatives, Norma Rojas, director- Communications and Community Relations and Abel Guzman- executive director- Rural Initiatives.
The official BC Padrinos Facebook page mentioned how “students to help them overcome any obstacles or challenges in their higher educational path.”
“You can help change the future of our community. Consider becoming a mentor to a Bakersfield College student or supporting students in their academic journey and beyond through BC’s PADRINOS program. For info, email Norma Rojas-Mora or Abel Guzman at [email protected]”