IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON EDUCATION, VOL. E-17, NO. 1, FEBRUARY 1974

Are Chicanos Attending Universities?

PEPE BARRON AND ALFREDO DE LOS SANTOS, JR.

Abstract-There are marked differences between Chicanos,Puerto Ricans, Spanish-speaking people and other ethnicminority groups as they relate to attracting, recruiting andretaining these students in engineering curricula and in pre-paring them for productive and satisfying careers as engineers.For example, educational institutions must radically improvethe educational delivery system for the Chicano, thus providingthese students with the necessary tools and credentials essen-tial to successfully compete in our contemporary society.Although some educators accept this responsibility, many donot know how best to accomplish the goal. This paper helpsto define the needs of Spanish-speaking people generally andmakes specific suggestions on how to make progress in in-creasing the involvement of Chicanos in the engineeringprofession.

INTRODUCTIONThe crisis of the undereducation of Chicano, Puerto Rican,

and other Spanish speaking people clearly suggests numerousunpleasant inadequacies regarding past and present whitesociety. In spite of our professtations and grandiose state-ments concerning the goals of democratic education, poorresults are visible in our institutions. El Congreso Nacional deAsuntos Colegiales has belatedly brought the grievous condi-tions of the Spanish Speaking into our society's attention.A few agencies and universities are slowly directing their

efforts to improve the educational status of the SpanishSpeaking. The school system is the only social institutiondirectly under the authority of the community and, as such, itmust assume the responsibility for meeting the needs of theSpanish Speaking. Specifically, educational institutions mustradically improve the educational delivery system for theChicano, thus providing our students with the necessary toolsand credentials essential to successfully compete in ourcontemporary society.Some educators accept this responsibility, however they do

not know how to best accomplish this goal; they do not compre-hend the complexity of the differences Chicanos have.Schools, colleges, and universities must adjust to the

students they are serving rather than insisting that the studentsadjust to the school. "This administration is committed to theprinciple and the practice of seeing to it that equal educationalopportunity is provided every child in every corner of this land...... We must make the schooling fit the student."

President Richard Nixon.Recent social, economic and cultural trends, scientific and

technological advances, and the progress of education as a

Manuscript received September 24, 1973.P. Barron is with the Spanish Speaking Fomento-American Associa-

tion of Community and Junior Colleges, Washington, D.C. 20036.A. G. De los Santos, Jr. is with El Paso Community College, El Paso,

Tex.

social instrument have resulted in fundamental changes in thepreception of the university. The university is not and couldno longer be an autonomous nor an isolated institution.Should the program to increase ethnicities in the field of

engineering be an attempt to restructure curriculum in terms ofknowledge of engineering and human development, then theimplications for the linguistically and culturally distinct in thiscountry must be taken into account.Due to the affirmative action plan, industry and higher edu-

cation are finally beginning to recognize the severe lack of andneed for Spanish speaking engineers.Engineering departments in those concerned universities

must make an effort to visit high schools to explain their pro-grams and the opportunities available to Chicano students.And they must speak in terms which the students understand.If the educational system continues to ignore the special

needs of the linguistically and culturally distinct, the realeffect of the traditional educational response (in this caseengineering schools) will be to further lock these students intovocational and terminal fields. Moreover, if languages otherthan English are ignored in the instructional process, then thelinguistically and culturally distinct will continue to be sortedout and channeled into job classifications where upwardmobility is non-existent.

In order to fulfill the potential of every student in a culturaldemocracy and preserve the right of every American to remainidentified with his or her own ethnic group while learning thenecessary skills to compete in the economic life of our society,engineering schools must give immediate attention to thespecial needs of Chicanos, Boricuas and others who are linguis-tically and culturally distinct.Spencer said, "The goal of education is to prepare us for

complete living." That should be the goal for every studentwho goes through our school system. However, due to the"melting pot" concept of American life, the Spanish Speakinghave been the lumps which did not melt; thus becoming thevictims of cultural assault and educational deprivation. In arecent address to New Mexico Highlands University, June1972, the assistant secretary of Education, Sidney Marland, Jr.,asserted that: "It goes against the grain, even in a child, to berequired to leam to read-and then to read that your fore-fathers were unimportant, that their customs and beliefs didnot deserve attention, from the majority culture-and thatyou likewise are destined to be nobody with no cultural heri-tage of your own."The first part of problem solving is the recognition that a

problem exists. Your asking for this article is a sign of thatconcern. In addition to recognizing the problem, you mustunderstand that the true bilingual and bicultural human beingis a valuable member of our society who is better prepared tohelp his community and his nation. Being bilingual is not ahandicap to be corrected or overcome, but a gift to be shared.You must understand that a multicultural society like ours

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BARRON AND DE LOS SANTOS: ARE CHICANOS ATTENDING UNIVERSITIES?

must exploit the richness of the literature and history andlanguage of every ethnicity. The only way we can do this is todevelop university systems which reflect our appreciation ofthe worth of every kind of student. Therefore, if the recruit-ment in engineering schools is to have any meaning whatsoever,to the Chicano and Puerto Rican students, an immediateattempt must be made to include considerations of theseelements in the development of new engineering programs inthis country. Let me point out some suggestions and markeddifferences between the Spanish Speaking and other ethnicitiesin effectively recruiting and retaining the Chicano student.

UNIVERSITY GOALS AND OBJECTIVESIt is imperative that each institution develop its own method

of achieving goals and objectives if we are to truly meet thediversity of educational needs of the people in the differentSpanish speaking communities throughout the nation.

ACCESS TO THE BENEFITS OF HIGHER EDUCATIONBarriers to accessibility to the Spanish speaking student have

been numerous: socio-economic status, ethinc background,assumption about college age, inadequate counseling informa-tion, geographic barriers, institutional competition forstudent, articulation of programs, processes and procedures foradmission and required courses and programs in high school.In the past, Chicanos have been counseled into what I call

"minority curriculum" meaning vocational-technical programsthat have not adequately prepared them for professionaldevelopment. Poor counseling and insensitivity in the part ofsecondary teachers have been the reason for channeling Chi-cano students into meaningless programs on the basis ofinvalid, unreliable testing instruments that in reality do notmeasure aptitude, potential or whatever needs to be measured.The same tests have been used by admissions personnel ininstitutions of higher learning to keep students fromenrolling in some institutions that have selective admissionsrequirements and from enrolling in "prestige" technicalprograms offered by universities supposedly attempting torecruit ethnicities.

COUNSELING SERVICES FOR THE CHICANOChicanos constitute a minority in nationwide terms. Yet, in

some parts of the country they form a substantial part of theircommunities. More importantly, their distinctively richculture and heritage represents a great resource for America,a resource that could be lost unless the educational institutionsof the country initiate new approaches to counseling theSpanish Speaking from pre-college through the engineeringdegree.There is a critical need for counselors who are not only

fluent in the Spanish language but who also understand thecultural factors involved in counseling the Chicano student.

Essentially the problem lies in the fact that most institutionscontinue to apply the same counseling methodology for allstudents without recognition of cultural and linguistic distinc-tions. Unfortunately, many counselors show little interest inthe Chicano student and try to dispose of him without reallymeeting his needs. In too many instances the Chicano student

is "counseled" into a minority curriculum-a vocationalprogram.On the one hand the schools expect the Chicano student to

pursue the good old American way without regard to languagedifferences and cultural backgrounds. By insisting on thisapproach, however, the institutions make it difficult for thestudent to succeed in the traditional program of study.To be effective, the counselor must be able to recognize and

work with the total person. In the case ofthe Chicano student,this means that many cultural factors must be taken into con-sideration. These include his social environment, his familylife and his scholastic experience. We are at the point in historywhen our best chance for successful counseling performanceswith ethnic group students is to be found in the effectiverecognition of their humanity and their present needs. Counsel-ing must include cultural encouragement. Counselors mustunderstand that the Chicano student is culturally distinct-butby no means disadvantaged. But all of this relies on one basicchange in the administrative attitude. That is that schoolstoday must adjust to the student they are serving, rather thaninsist that the student adjust to the school.The Chicano student depends heavily on counselors for

career, academic, and financial advice. Therefore, the studentinitially regards the counseling relationship from a purelypragmatic point of view. However, a good counselor will seekto establish a more profound relationship with the student-arelationship that will enable the counselor to assist the studentin vital decisions regarding educational and professional goals,educational alternatives, and personal values. The need forthis kind of quality counseling is reflected in the number ofChicano students who have dropped out of school. It is out-rageous to note that 45% of all the Spanish speaking studentsenrolled in secondary schools, do not complete the 12th year.The goal of our national education system is to providequality education experiences for everyone. If this goal is tobe met, then the traditional approach to counseling must giveway to a modem, humanistic approach that will bridge thecultural gaps between the "anglo" education system and theSpanish speaking student.The following are recommendations for an effective counsel-

ing and student personnel program:a) Inclusion of Spanish speaking personnel at all levels. The

effectiveness of the student personnel should be evaluated.b) Student services must be appropriately offered in order

to secure a positive student - university - professor dialogue.c) Adequate financial support must be one of their responsi-

bilities.d) Inservice training for counseling and student personnel is

a must.

COORDINATIONSignificant coordination should be a very important function

among collaborating institutions including secondary, commu-nity and junior colleges and university personnel. They shouldcome together in order to resolve educational issues and needs.This type of coordination could be activated at all levels.These are some of the functions that can be considered by

this coordinating committee:1. Agreement concerning concurrent enrollment of commu-

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IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON EDUCATION, VOL. E-17, NO. 1, FEBRUARY 1974

nity and junior college graduates seeking admittance in fouryear institutions.

2. Programs to provide information to high school studentson available courses and educational programs at all levels ofhigher education.

3. A colloquium to provide better articulation amongsecondary community and junior colleges and universitypersonnel to afford students the quantity, quality and varietyof education according to their abilities, interests and goals.

4. Transferability of credit must be arranged betweencollaborating community colleges and universities to provideequitable access for our transfer students.

STUDENT RETENTIONThe mortality rate for the Spanish Speaking is appalling, 95%

of all students who enter college drop out before completing

their fourth year (U.S. Commission on Civil Rights).Safeguards must be taken by the proponents of this recruit-

ing program to prevent this from happening again.Universities must understand that recruiting Spanish speaking

students is not the solution to their problem, they must have aviable mechanism to offer in house student services, counseling,tutorial, financial and the like in order to retain the studentsand see them graduate. The university must be committed tothe concept that educational institutions are for assisting allstudents in planning and achieving their goals and objectives."A Spanish speaking student is a diamond on the rough and,when a finished product, all it needs is some polish to becomea beautiful and priceless stone." "Upright is the word of Godand all his works are trustworthy. He loves justice and right."Responsorial Psalm 33:"Let us be right and give justice to our students."

Attracting and Motivating the American Indian

Student into Engineering and Technology

SANDOR POPOVICS, LEA M. POPOVICS, AND JOHN C. JOHNSON

Abstract-After examining the inadequately low enrollmentof American Indians in studies leading to degrees in Engineer-ing and Engineering Technology, this paper attempts to dis-cuss the reasons for this shortage. It also suggests methods toencourage, motivate, and enable Native American youth tostart meaningful studies in these fields. However, to succeedwith these methods, a constructive input must come fromwithin the Indians.The writers emphasize the necessity of an early start in

motivating the students to take the needed subjects in theirsecondary education. Orientation lectures should informthem, for instance, what is expected from an engineering ortechnology student at a university and what engineering workinvolves. Information obtained by field trips, moving demon-stration units, science clubs, etc., should supplement theselectures. It is also necessary that reservation teachers andcounselors be involved in the orientation program. Trainingprograms in nearby universities could supplement their back-

Manuscript received September 13, 1973.S. Popovics is with the College of Engineering and Technology,

Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff, Ariz.L. M. Popovics is an independent on-call consultant in Flagstaff,

Ariz.J. C. Johnson is with the Department of Industrial Education, North-

ern Arizona University, Flagstaff, Ariz.

ground in the nature of engineering as well as in teachingscience and mathematics with special reference to technicalapplications. The implementation of the whole program,including the demonstration units, teachers' programs, tuto-rials, etc., would require a considerable amount of funds. Theestablishment of a suitable position for the coordination ofall the pertinent activities is definitely needed along with thesupport of the program by professional organizations as wellas by the Indians.

INTRODUCTIONThe number of practicing American Indian engineers and

technologists in all fields is very low. It is even worse thatwithout a drastic interference the level will remain the samesince the enrollment of Indians in studies that lead to a degreein Engineering or Engineering Technology is also regretfullylow. This fact can be verified by the 1972-73 enrollmentrecord, including both undergraduate and graduate students,in a few engineering colleges in the southwest. For example,the University of Arizona had 9 Indians enrolled out of a totalof 1,395 engineering students; Utah State Unviersity had 2out of 555; University of New Mexico, 1 out of 1,069; NewMexico State and Arizona State University with total en-rollments of well over a thousand students had no knowl-

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