HSO Receives Honorary OLE Award at USF

Sonia Diaz and Michelle Robinson accepting the symbolic
OLE Award presented by Victor Hernandez,
OLE Committee Chair

Tampa, FL. (October 18, 2011). The Verizon Hispanic Support Organization (HSO), Florida Chapter, was recognized with an honorary Outstanding Latino/a Educator (OLE) Award at the 7th Annual Outstanding Latino/a Educator Awards event celebrated on October 12th, 2011 at the TECO Room in the College of Education.

The OLE Awards are given annually to students who have demonstrated exceptional performance and great potential in the areas of teaching, research, and service. One award is given at the undergraduate, masters, and doctoral level; and an honorary mention is also given in each category. The OLE Awards have become highly regarded and they are a source of pride for recipients, their families, faculty, the college, and for the community supporting the educational advancement of Latinos. For this year’s recipients you may visit a related posting about the 2011 Award Recipients.

This year, the OLE Awards Committee decided to also recognize the Verizon Hispanic Support Organization (HSO) for supporting the OLE Awards and for promoting Latino education in the greater Tampa Bay area. During the earlier years of the OLE Awards, there were times when the OLE Committee had difficulty securing sufficient support for the OLE scholarship awards. In recent years, this has not been an issue thanks to the continued commitment of the Verizon Hispanic Support Organization to sponsor the OLE Awards. This year—in particular—in a demonstration of its strong commitment to supporting the OLE Awards, in addition to funding the scholarships for the Awards, the organization also invited all nominees and OLE Committee members to a Hispanic Support Organization Banquet to celebrate the Hispanic heritage in the community and recognize outstanding Latinos and Latinas in the area. This is quite an investment in the Latino community, and the OLE Committee felt it was important to recognize that commitment.

This is even more remarkable given the fact that, although the group is associated with Verizon, the organization is an employee-funded endeavor. HSO is a grassroots Verizon employee resource group seeking the advancement of Hispanic employees and improving their communities. And the OLE Committee wanted to show its appreciation to HSO for supporting the advancement of Latino education in the College of Education at USF. To that end, the OLE Committee also presented the organization with a symbolic award for the group’s work in promoting Latino education in the community. Michelle Robinson, President; and Sonia Diaz, Treasurer, received the award on behalf of HSO.

Dean Colleen Kennedy Receives Honorary OLE Award

Dean Colleen Kennedy being recognized by OLE Committee
members Carlos Zalaquett and Victor Hernandez

Tampa, FL. (October 18, 2011). Dr. Colleen Kennedy, Dean of the College of Education at the University of South Florida, received an honorary Outstanding Latina Educator (OLE) Award at the 7th Annual Outstanding Latino/a Educator Awards event celebrated on October 12th, 2011 at the TECO Room in the College of Education.

The OLE Awards are given annually to students who have demonstrated exceptional performance and great potential in the areas of teaching, research, and service. One award is given at the undergraduate, masters, and doctoral level; and an honorary mention is also given in each category. The OLE Awards have become highly regarded and they are a source of pride for recipients, their families, faculty, the college, and for the community supporting the educational advancement of Latinos. For this year’s recipients you may visit a related posting about the 2011 OLE Awards.

This year, the OLE Awards Committee decided to also recognize Dean Colleen Kennedy as an honorary Outstanding Latina Educator for being instrumental in advancing Latino education. She has been a champion of the OLE Awards, and most importantly, she has been successful in promoting growing enrollment of Latino students in the College of Education and ensuring a steady attainment of degrees in education year after year. Over the past three years, undergraduate and graduate Latino enrollment in the College of Education has increased 14 and 15 percent, respectively; while degrees awarded to Latino students have remained relatively constant at about 100 plus per year counting both undergraduate and graduate degrees. In fact, the USDOE ranks the College of Education 15th in the nation for degrees awarded to Latino/Hispanic students.

To put these achievements in perspective, according to the Condition of Education 2011 report, Latino high school students continue to have the highest drop out rates in the nation compared to other groups. Further, in 2009, only 8.1% of the Hispanic population in the nation had earned a bachelor’s degree and only 3.8% had earned a doctoral degree. While the number of Spanish-speaking students in schools continues to grow at about 22%, and have become the largest minority in the United States—the number of Latino/a teachers remains very low. Only about 6% of the nation’s teachers are Hispanic.

Research suggests that the more Latino teachers we have in schools, the better Latino students do, and thus the relevant work of Dean Kennedy in the College of Education preparing more Latino teachers, as well as counselors, and other professionals needed in the field. For these reasons, the OLE Awards Committee presented Dean Kennedy with a symbolic award as a token of appreciation for a job well done. Ole!

2011 Award Recipients

View:     Pictures     View Video of Award Nominations on iTunes

TAMPA, Fla. (October 12, 2011) – The USF College of Education (COEDU) is pleased to announce the Seventh Annual Outstanding Latino/a Educator (OLÉ) Awards.  The awards are given annually to outstanding Latino/a COEDU students who demonstrate exceptional performance and potential in the areas of teaching, research, and service.  One award is available at the undergraduate, master’s, and doctoral level. Additionally, there is an honorable mention award for each level as well.  The criteria for the awards are posted on the section About the OLE Awards.

This year’s recipients are an impressive and inspirational group. Winners and honorable mention in the undergraduate, masters, and doctoral level are listed below.

Undergraduate Level

OLE Award Winner: Angel Manuel Arroyo Sr. Angel is completing his bachelor’s degree in Physical Education. A student whose Puerto Rican background is a source of pride, Angel strives to engage students through a culturally relevant curriculum. He was nominated for the OLE Award by Dr. Sara Flory, Assistant Professor in the School of Physical Education and Exercise Science.

Honorary Mention: Casey Marin. Casey is a Social Science Education major with dreams of teaching English in Costa Rica upon graduation. A native of New Orleans, Casey’s Venezuelan background comes into play when he creates culturally rich lessons in his USF courses. He was nominated by Dr. Barbara Cruz, Professor in the Department of Secondary Education.

Master's Level

OLE Award Winner: Marisol Montoya. Marisol is working on a master’s degree in Educational Leadership. Born and raised in Mexico, Marisol’s work with migrant youth is helping close the achievement and graduation gap for this group of students. She was nominated by Dr. Bill Black, Assistant Professor in the Department of Educational Leadership and Policy Studies.

Honorary Mention: Pablo Gallego Álvarez. Pablo is pursuing a master’s degree in Educational Leadership, using his teaching, research, and service to better the lives of Latinos. Originally from Spain, Pablo has received numerous awards and uses his knowledge and love of sports to engage students.

Doctoral Level

OLE Award Winner: Ana T. Torres-Ayala. Ana, a native of Puerto Rico, is pursuing her Ph.D. in Higher Education with an interest in preparing future faculty in engineering. She has presented her preliminary research findings at the American Society for Engineering Education to great acclaim. She was nominated by Dr. Tom Miller, Associate Professor in the Department of Psychological and Social Foundations.

Honorary Mention: Connie Walker-Egea. Connie is completing a Ph.D. in Educational Measurement and Evaluation. A registered and licensed dietitian, she has worked in her native Puerto Rico as well as in the United States, and has presented at national and international conferences. She was nominated by Dr. Liliana Rodriguez-Campos, Associate Professor in the Department of Measurement and Research.

The presentation of the OLE Awards took place on Wednesday, October 12, 2011,  6-8  pm, in the TECO Room of the College of Education. The event and the awards are sponsored with generous support from Verizon’s Hispanic Support Organization.

Improving Education for the Latino Community

In his State of the Union, the President made it clear that the most important contest this country faces today is not between Democrats and Republicans, but with competitors around the world for the jobs and industries of our time. To win that contest and secure prosperity for all Americans, we must out-innovate, out-educate, and out-build the rest of the world. The Latino community is integral to that plan to win the future.

There are 50.5 million Hispanics in the United States, composing 16 percent of the total population and a significant portion of the labor force. When you add the nearly 4 million residents of Puerto Rico, the total number of Latinos surpasses 54 million. Between 2000 and 2010, the Latino population increased by 15.2 million, accounting for more than half of the 27.3 million increase in the total population of the United States. In the coming decades, Latinos will continue to drive the growth of the labor force, as they will account for 60 percent of the Nation’s population growth between 2005 and 2050. In this way, Latino success in education and in the labor market is of both immediate and long-term importance to America’s economy. Learn more...