Umoja Students Visit HBCUs, Attend Conference
[tabs slidertype=”simple”][tab]
[/tab][tab]
[/tab][tab]
[/tab][tab]
[/tab][tab]
[/tab][tab]
[/tab][tab]
[/tab][tab]
[/tab][tab]
[/tab][tab]
[/tab][tab]
[/tab][/tabs]
November was a busy month for the Umoja program which recently sent students on a tour of historically black colleges and universities (HBCU) in the South and the 12th annual Umoja Conference in Los Angeles.
The HBCU tour took place the week of Nov. 8. Students visited many Civil Rights landmarks, like the 16th Street Baptist Church and Tougaloo College (the largest former plantation in Mississippi).
“The HBCU tour had a big impact on our students,” said Jasmine McLeod, Umoja outreach coordinator. “Overall this trip was an amazing experience for both students and staff and brought out many emotions.”
Student Josh Quinonez said the tour was a life-changing experience.
“The HBCU tour gave me insight into different historically black schools throughout the country that I was previously unaware of, as well as provided me with the resources to transfer into them,” Quinonez said. “It was also a lesson on the blood, sweat and tears many people had to go through in order for me to continue my education. These lessons I will carry for the rest of my life, and upon my matriculation in education.”
The tour exposed students to more opportunities for higher education as they were able to apply for transfer admission at each of the universities visited. Some students felt without this tour they would not have known how many transfer options were available outside of California or the vast amount of scholarship opportunities available to them at HBCUs, McLeod said.
The 12th annual Umoja Conference in Los Angeles took place Nov. 4 and 5. The conference provided professional and academic development by immersing students in a community of people dedicated to civil awareness.
To learn more about the Fullerton College Umoja program visit its website at http://umoja.fullcoll.edu/.
