Lori Acosta Cynthia Aguilar Arlene AlarconLaura AlcantarGraciela ArmengolAdriana BadilloPatricia S. BarrientosLydia H. Burrola Marina CanoMaria del Carmen Casavantes

Georgina ChavezIsabel ChaviraGuadalupe DavilaCristina DominguezMargaret (Margo) EndlichGraciela ErivezIrene Escalante Nancy GamezDolores Gross Mary Beth Haan

Lorraine (Lori) HoefnerMaria E. LopezGuadalupe LoyaAlma LoyaJuanita MartinezGail (Paula) MeagherLilia (Lily) MedranoElizabeth (Liz) Olguin-RyanDolores PaviaJoanne Peeples

Theresa RiveraMargaret RodriguezLucia RodriguezElizabeth (Liz) RodriguezLeticia (Letty) SalasCristina (Raquel) V. SalasPatti SayersLuz TerronesGrace Vaughn Angeles Vazquez

On March 23, 2016, Diversity Programs presented the 8th Annual Women’s History Month Celebration. This celebration is an opportunity for forty women to be honored with the Diamond Award for demonstrating their “brilliance” in their commitment, dependability, creativity, innovation, teamwork and leadership qualities while at the College. The event’s Panelists included Dora Beltran, Selena Solis, and Ann Crawford McClure. Dr. Veronica Mallett, M.D., was the Keynote Speaker. The latter women gave phenomenal speeches that inspired the hundreds in attendance.

2016 DiamonD awarD recipients

Panel Discussion & Bios

Dora Beltran is a member of the Tigua Indian Tribe of Ysleta del Sur Pueblo. Among the joys of living a culturally rich Native American life in the heart of an urbanized city, she also experienced the harsh life of extreme poverty and the struggle that so many in her community endured. It was the actions of her parents that taught her to rise above the obstacles she faced, not only for her immediate family but for her tribal family as well. Mrs. Beltran began working at El Paso Com-munity College Action-Migrant Program in 1966, and through her employment met two doctors who were willing to provide free medical assistance for the Tigua community. In 1957, she became the first tribal employee, and in 1974 became the first certified Tigua Policewoman.

Selena Solis is an Austin native who adopted El Paso and the Southwest as her home in Octo-ber 2003 when she became an Assistant Federal Public Defender for the Federal Public Defender in the Western District of Texas. She provides legal defense representation in federal criminal cases to individuals financially unable to obtain adequate legal representation. Ms. Solis received her undergraduate degree in Latin American Studies from the University of Texas at Austin. She is a frequent lecturer and faculty at national training seminars for private ap-pointed attorneys on indigent criminal defense topics in federal court. In May 2013, Ms. Solis was elected to serve a 6-year term as Board of Trustee for District 4 for El Paso Community College.

Chief Justice Ann McClure is the first female Chief Justice of the Eight Court of Appeals. She completed her undergraduate education at Texas Christian University in Fort Worth, and graduated Mag-na Cum Laude with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in Communications. In 1979, she received her Juris Doc-torate from the University of Houston Law Center and entered private practice with a preeminent family law firm in Houston. Justice McClure relocated to El Paso in 1983 when she married attorney David McClure and began a solo practice in appellate law. In 1992, she and her husband merged their respective practices into the partnership of McClure and McClure. Justice McClure became Chief Justice in October 2011, the year the court celebrated its centennial anniversary.

Dr. Mozella Garcia (Moderator) was twice elected as Diversity Council chair at New Mexico State University (NMSU). In addition to this position at the university, she sevred as the NMSU Doña Ana Commu-nity College Student Success Center Director, El Paso Community College Diversity Council advisory member and National Council of Instructional Administrators (NCIA) board member. Other leadership positions held include chair of the NMSU Hispanic Faculty/Staff Caucus, DACC Diversity Caucus and DACC Retention Executive Committee. Prior to coming to NMSU, Dr. Garcia helped confound The Midland Hispanic Cultural Center, a center that provides children age 5-18 the opportunity to learn arts, traditions, customs and culture.

Keynote sPeaKer – Veronica Mallett, M.D.

Arlene Alarcon

Rebekah Bell

Aida Black

Michelle Chavez

Olga C. Chavez, Chair

Mozella Garcia

Lorena Navedo

Luz Roberts

Liz Olguin-Ryan

Diamantina Storment

M OT H E R S DAY A R O U N D T H E WO R L D• In the majority of the world’s languages, the word for “mother” begins with the letter M.

• About 122 million telephone calls are made to mothers in the United States alone.

• Approximately $14 billion dollars is spent on Mother’s Day.

• It was President Woodrow Wilson who, in May 9, 1914, signed a bill recognizing Mother’s Day as a national holiday.

“Happy Mother’s Day!” in Different Languages

Welsh: “Sul y Mamau Hapus yn!”Italian: “Buona festa della mamma!”French: “Bonne fête des mères!”Portuguese: “Feliz Dia das Mães!”

Dr. Mallett was born in Detroit, Michigan. She attended college at Bernard College, Colum-bia University in New York and then attended medical school at Michigan State University, College of Human Medicine in East Lansing, Michigan. After medical school, she did her res-idency in Obstetrics and Gynecology at Wayne State University in Detroit where she also completed a Fellowship in Urological Gynecology. In addition to her extensive medical training, Dr.

Mallett has undergone leadership training by the AAMC, Covey Lead-ership Center, Scientific Method Inc., the Council on Resident Education in OB/GYN (CREOG), Executive Leaders in Academic Medicine (ELAM), the National Association of Public Health Hospitals, the University Health Consortium Medical Leadership Program, and Patient Safety Improvement Corporation. She obtained her Master’s degree in Medical Manage-ment from Carnegie Mellon in Pittsburg in March 2011. She has been an invited speaker at numerous national conferences as a thoughtful leader and expert. Dr. Mallett has also authored over forty articles, book chap-ters and abstracts. She has conducted numerous clinical trials and has a fruitful research career. Dr. Mallett is a member of a number of profes-sional organizations including the American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology, American Uro-Gynecologic Society, and American Medical Association.

retreat This year, I had the privilege of attending EPCC’s 23rd Annual Staff Retreat which took place April 21 through 23 in South Padre Island, Texas. This year’s theme was Wellness: A Way of Life, featuring Jose M. Baltazar, Ph.D., as the keynote speaker. Participants were divided into four teams. I was honored to serve with Team One, The Kardiacs, which focused on causes and ways to relieve stress. Team Two, The House of Carbs presented on proper nutrition, Team Three, Fit Maniacs on the benefits of exercise and types of daily activities to be active, and Team Four, The Dream Team, on the importance of rest and the effects on the mind and body.

I wish to acknowledge and thank the following:

•OlgaC.Chavez,DirectorofDiversityProgramsandmyadministratorforauthorizingmyattendancetothis year’s staff retreat

•Dr.WilliamSerrata,President,andJosetteShaughnessy,VicePresident,Financial&Administrative Operations/CFO, for supporting the staff retreat

•AlexHernandezandMariReyeswithHumanResourcesDevelopment,forcoordinatingandorganizingthe staff retreat

•Dr.JoseM.Baltazar,keynotespeaker,forsharinghisexpertiseandinsightwithretreatparticipants

•FacilitationTeamMembers,IsabelHernandez,PabloRivera,PamelaMarquez,ArmandoSalazar,Sabrina Campbell, Jesus Garcia, Bianca Tidwell, and Leticia Adame for leading the participants in lively discussions and fun breakout sessions!!!

by Aida Black

W H AT K E E P S S T U D E N T S AT E P CC ?

“Location, location, location. Tuition is much lower than university level. They [the students] get a more personal experience here.” – Charles Miller, English Professor

“Low cost and familiarity.” – Saul Reyes, Business Major

“Affordability.” – Carolina Valdez, Media Advertising

“Student community.” – Juan Torres, Business and Accounting

“Low tuition.” – Sofia Chavez, Physiology

“Cheap.” – Rox Ann Moreno, Broadcasting

“Affordable compared to UTEP… Smaller classes.” – Cruz Lujan, Music Composition

Students and professors were asked about why they think students stay at El Paso Community College. The following are some of the responses we recieved:

insiDe the office - DiVersity PrograMsA closer look into the Diversity Program workplace.

a new MeMBer of our teaM

stuDent success

Also a congratulations to Cynthia Flores on her graduation!

Michelle Chavez has 12 years’ experience as a profes-sional in an educational setting. She has been involved with El Paso Community College (EPCC) since 2011. She’s worked as an Administrative Associate at our EPCC Marketing department and worked as a Manager at our EPCC Fabens Education Center. Michelle has a Master’s Degree in Education. She teaches EDUC 1300 as Adjunct Faculty at Cotton Valley Early College High School. As of October 2015; she is the Project Coordinator for our EPCC Diversity Programs department. Michelle assists

the Director in the development of program evaluation instruments to monitor the effec-tiveness of the Diversity Programs Network. She assists and participates in marketing and outreach activities as they relate to Diversity. She coordinates and participates in community outreach presentations to promote Diversity programs to current EPCC stu-dents. Some “life outside of education” facts about her... She’s a proud Mother to Victoria, age 20, and Andrea, age 18. She’s been involved in church service all her life. Michelle is an avid volunteer. “Volunteering,” according to Michelle, “is one of the most womanly, noble and admirable things a woman can do. It’s also a great way to seek fulfillment and to appreciate your own life more.” Michelle enjoys country music and “old-ies.” She spends most of her time trying to do God’s will because, “Knowing God’s will is the key to prayer, spiritual growth and fruitfulness in our individual lives.”

Cesia I. Lerma-Orozco is a student at El Paso Commu-nity College since 2011. She began her studies in the ESL program and then continued her education in the Associ-ate degree program. She is married to Jorge Orozco who was alumni at El Paso Community College, too. She has two children, Benjamin, 13 years old, and Keren, 11 years old. She is one of the Diversity Programs’ work studies since August 2015. She is a hard worker, model student, friendly, and a helpful person. Cesia is a member of the National Honor Society of Collegiate Scholars, which recognizes outstanding academic achievement among first and second year college

students. She is also a member of the Run El Paso club. She has participated in several rac-es and marathons in El Paso and Cd. Juarez. In collaboration with the Run El Paso club, she has helped as a volunteer in the Houchen Community Center whose mission is to make God’s love a reality in El Segundo Barrio and nearby neighborhoods through working to meet the physical, educational, social and spiritual needs of children, youth, and adults. This coming May, Cesia is going to graduate with an Associate of Arts Degree in Music. She likes singing, playing the piano and flute. When she graduates she want to continue her education and obtain a Bachelor’s Degree in music education.

insiDe the office - DiVersity PrograMsA closer look into the Diversity Program workplace.

Thanks to Michelle Chavez, our office was selected as Sunny 99.9’s Office of the Week win-ner.Bill&Melissafromthe radio station’s popu-lar morning show visited our office to congratulate us and presented us with chocolate covered straw-berries from Fudge-N-More, delectable pastries from the Pastry Chef Café, and Michelle was gifted with an aromat-ic Taylor Swift perfume and an exquisite bouquet of flowers from Carter’s Flowers.

O F F I C EO F T H EW E E K

insiDe the office - DiVersity PrograMsA closer look into the Diversity Program workplace.

Alex Arellano has worked as a graphic designer for Diversity Programs for about a year. During this time he has attended El Paso Community College (EPCC)

as a freshmen in college, as he works towards his associates degree in graphic de-sign. Afterwards, he hopes to continue his education at the University of Texas at El Paso

(UTEP) under a double major in marketing and graphic design. Outside of EPCC he is the graphic designer, lead vocals, and rhythm guitarist for the band XXII (Twenty-Two), where he

is known as Alex Bird. In his free time Alex enjoys to spend time with friends, write songs, and take on other design opportunities as he builds his resumé and makes his name known in the

graphic design community.

ALEx ARELLANO - GRAPHIC DESIGNER

ISMAEL BRANDO MOORE - EDITOR Ismael Brando Moore has worked for Diversity Programs since September of 2015 and, as a student, has been here at El Paso Community College for almost three years. He graduated from Montwood High School in the Spring of 2013 and im-mediately enrolled in college. Ismael is majoring in English in order to be a book publisher in New York City or Los Angeles and is expected to receive his Associate of Arts Degree in English this December. He aspires to be a fiction writer and jokes that he wants to be “more famous and richer than Stephen King and J.K. Rowling combined!” During his spare time Ismael enjoys reading novels, writing fiction, not doing homework, going to the cinema to see his favorite celebrities, and listening to Britney Spears and other pop music.

MEET THE CREATORSV

The Hispanic Heritage Committee is already planning this year’s 15th Annual Hispanic Heritage Month. The committee will organize events that will occur from September 16 to October 15. The Mentors’ Dinner will be held October 14.

2016 HISPANIC HERITAGE MONTH

SPECIAL THANkS TO NOLAND RICHARDSONAll of us here at Diversity Programs would like to thank Noland Richardson for attending our Remembering and Honoring our Past event on February 29th during Black History Month. He inspired everyone in the room with his moving speech before

taking the time to give autographs and take photographs with the event’s attendees.

Olga C. Chavez, M.A., LPC District Director

Office: (915) 831-3322 Fax: (915) 831-3326

Email: ochave30@epcc.edu

Aida BlackAdministrative AssociateOffice: (915) 831-3324

Fax: (915) 831-3326Email: ablack2@epcc.edu

Michelle Chavez, M.Ed. Project Associate

Office: (915) 831-2372FAx: (915) 831-3324

Email: molivall11@epcc.edu

Alex Arellano STS Intern, Graphic Designer

Cesia LermaWork Study Clerk

Ismael Prieto Work Study Clerk

Cynthia FloresBusiness Managment Intern

This newsletter was created and developed by Ismael Prieto and Alex Arellano. For suggestions, comments, and improvements, please contact the office of Diversity Programs at (915) 831-3324

The El Paso Community College District does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, religion, gender, age, disability, veteran status, sexual orientation, or gender identity.