Episode 3 - Hispanic Heritage

[00:00:03] Speaker A: Hello, I am Brian Stewart Kendall, campus President, and welcome to Kendall Speaks. Today, Kendall speaks with Hispanic Heritage Month. So with me today is Dr. Karim Diaz, Associate Dean of Faculty, and Dr. Shawn McLean, Grant Project Director for Stitches. Welcome. We're so glad to have you both with us today to talk about a very important month coming up, Hispanic Heritage Month. Dr. McLean, we'll start with you. Talk a little bit about what the mission of Heritage Hispanic Committee is and how does it align with the overall values of the campus community. [00:00:38] Speaker B: Well, first, thank you for having me. First time here. So this is going to be very fun. So the mission of the Hispanic Heritage Committee basically is for all of us here at Miami Dade College Kendall campus to come together and kind of celebrate Hispanic Month. That goes from September 15th through October 15th. But basically it's a celebration. It's wonderful events at the. Dr. Diaz and I have been able to put together and work on different things that Hispanic and Latino individuals are very proud of to celebrate, like things with dominoes and such. But I think it aligns with the overall values of our campus community because Kendall, the Kendall region is about 66% Hispanic. It's a largely Hispanic populated community, and Miami Dade College itself is a Hispanic serving institution. So I think Hispanic. Hispanic Heritage Month is a very, very important month for Miami Dade College personnel and the students, based on the large population of Hispanics that we serve here. [00:01:31] Speaker A: Very good. We appreciate your leadership in that. Dr. Diaz, talk a little bit about some of the key events and activities planned for this year's Hispanic Heritage Month here at Kendall campus. [00:01:41] Speaker C: Hi, Dr. Stewart, thank you so much for the invitation. To begin with, this is what we're trying to do, basically create awareness. So I feel like this podcast is an excellent opportunity to spread the word. So some of the key events that we have lined up is firstly the one that we just celebrated on the 14th, which is Mexican Independence Day. And this is just an effort not only of our campus community, but also of the broader community. We had our Miami Dade county major here present with us. We had you supporting us. And the event was amazing. It was open to the community. And after that, we're just gonna open up the campus lineup with Las Banderas, which is a wonderful parade that we have, celebrating the 20 flags that are part of the Hispanic Heritage celebration celebration. And then after that, we're just going to do some dancing and so on. We also have a variety of culinary experiences. We have art exhibit and literature exhibit and the learning commons for the students to enjoy. And what we have tried to accomplish through this event is to incorporate a little bit of our product, which is academics. Right. So we do have a lot of celebrations and a lot of fun, but we also have the Latin ensemble playing, which is our very own students. We also have dominoes and you know, it's just basically to stimulate the students to love math and so on. And we also have an amazing panel that is new this year. And in that panel, which is going to highlight not only our professors and our community leaders in the arts, but also our very own alumni. [00:03:06] Speaker A: Very good. I had the. Like you mentioned, the Mexican independence event Saturday was incredible. Mayor Cava was actually her birthday, so we got to sing her happy birthday. And what a crazy event. There was so much good food there and so many amazing people and a lot of our students were there. So it's a great kickoff, I think, to the event. Well, Karim, while we're there, why don't you tell us a little bit about how you got to Miami Dade College. What was your path to Miami Dade College? [00:03:31] Speaker C: Was the immigrant path, right? I arrived from Cuba and then I come here and the only institution that opens the doors to me is Miami Dade College. I was blessed enough to have learned some English back in Cuba, so it was easy. And I was able to land in our English for academic program. And then as I was doing my level fifth and sixth there, I also got an opportunity for employment at Miami Dade College as a student assistant. And then, you know, as the leaders that I had shaped me. Then I started getting promotions and promotions and here we are today. So I'm a firm believer of the power of Miami Dade College and impacting students lives. [00:04:04] Speaker A: And now you've served on other campuses too, right? You were at Homestead, I believe, before this? [00:04:08] Speaker C: Yes, I have been in Homestead and I have been at West Campus and a lot of the campuses I have served as either the co chair or the chair of the Hispanic Heritage Committee. Wow. [00:04:16] Speaker A: Well, great to have you here. I know that our Dean of faculty is very blessed to have you as our Associate Dean and thank you for all you do for this and glad you made your way here. Sean, tell me about your path. And we won't talk about the Cowboys today, but maybe the time people listen to this, it'll be a better Monday morning. But talk about your path to the Kendall campus, if you would. [00:04:35] Speaker B: So I was born in Puerto Rico myself, moved here when I was six. My parents have always been extremely supportive of me. My path was more of the employment side. My education went through FIU though, which is one of our transfer institutions. So I'm very proud of that. Florida International University has always treated me very well. I worked there for a little bit, too, before I came back to Kendall campus. But Miami Dade College, Kendall campus has always been a home for me, even though I left for a little. For a little bit. I've been very, very blessed to work here, and I'm glad to be back and working with Dr. Diaz and serving on this committee. But Miami's always been my home. All the institutions I've attended have been in Dade County. All my jobs have been in Dade County. So, you know, Miami's just home. That's just the way I see it. I wouldn't. I wouldn't feel comfortable being anywhere else. So I hope that Kendall is my home for many years to come. [00:05:25] Speaker A: Well, please talk a little bit about the stitches program while we have you here, because that's really an amazing program, and I've had to. I've gotten to witness it at the medical campus, and I'd love to hear just a few minutes about that, if you don't mind. [00:05:36] Speaker B: Yeah, of course. Stitches, Actually, it's an acronym for students and teacher. Integrated center for health Sciences. It's a program that basically was put in place because our nursing students here in Kendall campus, in the Kendall region were struggling in their barrier classes or their intro classes in the health sciences track for nursing and other respiratory care and lab clinical sciences and dental hygiene and vet tech. Some of those programs, as you're, you know, well familiar with. But There was a 32% pass rate when we took over. It's. That's one of three students passing. That's. That's not great. Ever since we've taken over, we've gotten close to 59%, which is now almost two of every three students passing, which now has. It's resulted in us being able to send a lot more quality students over the medical campus and just get more students through the programming. And the biggest thing about this program is the testimonials and the things that students come back to us with. We get a lot of appreciation. I get a lot of thank yous. And I have students who are actually at medical campus or actually seeing students at clinics who are like, oh, I took your program. And Professor Diaz, counselor came to me the other day and said that one of the students who were in the stitches program was helping her as a office assistant. And, you know, just. She came up to me and was like, oh, they. They were glowing about how pltl. And this is not something that should be taken for granted. So at the end of the day, the biggest takeaway is how much we've been able to impact students lives. [00:07:00] Speaker A: That's really good. And you're right. We regularly talk at the medical campus about Kendall students. And I think your program, among many others and some of yours, Dr. Diaz too, make a difference. The nursing faculty know that. As a matter of fact, when I spok to the honors students my first day on the job here, about half the room wanted to be in a medical field. So I think what you're doing is really important. Not only hitting nursing, but health science, because there's a lot of opportunity there. [00:07:24] Speaker B: For our students, especially Kendall. The Kendall region is massive in the amount of hospitals and clinics that we have around here. And that was another reason why this grant was very important. But thank you. Thank you for your words. [00:07:33] Speaker A: It is. And we have a lot of good partners there. Clarium, talk a little bit about some of the programs in your area before we go back to Heritage Month. I think it's important some of the things that are going on in academics that I know you proud of. [00:07:45] Speaker C: Yes, definitely. So the academic affairs division of Miami Dade College is pretty rich compared to other campuses. We have 10 disciplines and departments. Actually, Stitches is housed under the life sciences and wellness department. So that's one of the amazing programs that we have. Thank you, Sean, for sharing that. And we also have an amazing performance arts and industries department that covers a wide range of disciplines from theater to dance to humanities and music, of course. And they do an amazing job of producing more than 35 events for students during the year involving more than 150 students with talent and also more than 32 faculty members. So we're very proud of that. In addition to that, which is launched an amazing program under the data analytics and the NTECH department, which is obviously our artificial intelligence program. Not only our campus, but the college is pioneering that. So are very proud of that. And we also have within the arts and philosophies, a new certificate in museum art studies, which is wonderful. Something else that's pretty hot. And coming up is the sports management program that we have under the school of Global Business. And for that we have a certificate and an associate on the way. So we're very proud of that. [00:08:54] Speaker A: Very good. You can see our audience can see that we have two rock stars here with us today. And we appreciate you sharing both of what's going on. Let's get back to Hispanic Heritage Month. Sean, talk about some of the unique events that you're especially Excited about this year for our celebration. [00:09:09] Speaker B: So we have Las Banderas event is always very nice. It's a very proud event. Students get to see their flags and where they're from, where their parents are from, where, you know, some students parents have struggled, but they, they came through and they've done what they've been able to do from their own countries now in the United States. So every student could proudly see their flag as it's gracing across the stage. But that's a very nice event. I'll be emceeing that event, so you'll get to hear this voice a little bit more there. But the Fireside Chat event is something that Claram and I. Excuse me, I'm gonna call you Claram from here. [00:09:42] Speaker C: Yes, for sure. [00:09:43] Speaker B: Clarim and I have been able to establish and we were creating this event and you know, little rumblings here and there started getting out and it started to become. Even though it's gonna be a Kendall campus event, I think a lot of folks from other campuses are very interested in this Fireside Chat because we're bringing basically a decorated panel of Latino and Hispanic awarded people such as Alan Moore, our own faculty, Tony Chirinos, Marlo Rosado, poet Laurete, and it's going to be emceed and led by Marla Maria, Carlos Chicwan, which is the executive director of cultural affairs. So this event is going to be a very, very popular and strong event. And I believe there's going to be people here from the Wolfson campus also kind of gracing us with their presence here. So we're very excited about that one. The Cafe Salsa events, always popular. We did a salsa event before from. On a Friday from 5 to 7pm There must have been 150 people there dancing salsa. But in this one, we're going to get them caffeinated, we're going to get them excited, we're going to get them energetic. We're going to. The hope is to have coffees from like different parts of the world. Costa Rica, Colombia. And that's always exciting to see like that salsa dancing that bleeds Hispanic. You know how salsa merengue, something so like proud when you see people dancing, so graceful and such a nice thing to see. And we're going to have a Hispanic heritage literature display in the learning commons. So we're happy with some of these events. [00:11:08] Speaker C: Yeah. And just to add to that, basically just to speak on how good the committee has done this, Fireside Chat was actually a result of a collaboration that we had during Our first meeting, because that's where we start, right? We start planning by hearing everybody's voices in the committee. And then this event came to be. We had some people in the committee who had some connections, but when the Office of Cultural affairs and my Miami Dade College as a college saw this, they definitely wanted to participate. And we're going to have the support of Maria Carla and her team. And again, we're going to have an amazing panel of guests, from Grammy winners to the Poet laureate of the county, Caridad Grandier Motto, and even one of our alumni, Alain Moore, who is one of the alumni from the Performing Arts Department, and she has been a Grammy nominee several times. [00:11:54] Speaker A: Yeah, that's an amazing slate. I can't wait for some of that. You were talking about the salsa dancing. Some of the children the other night at the Mexican Independence were just having a blast. The audience was dancing. And quite frankly, every time I go, people at Miami Dade College can dance. So I'm excited for that. And one of the other things I have to bring up was the flag you mentioned. Maybe my favorite part of graduation is when we do the flag ceremony and the pride and the noise and how everybody makes it for their protector country. So I do think that's another moving event that we're excited for. [00:12:25] Speaker B: Definitely. There's also going to be a Roomba mania, which is always very important. That's always an annual event because it's donations for United Way. So that's very. We tie into United Way. So that's a very, very important event for us, too. And it's very fun. And I hope I get to see you out there doing some zumba, Roomba and salsa and all the nine. I hope you're part of the celebrations. But regardless, we're very excited about these events. Dr. Claire Ronaldias and myself have decided, like, we really want to make this a very passionate year. We even requested shirts that I think came out very nice. [00:12:58] Speaker A: They are. I've seen the shirts. I've got one in my office. I can't wait to wear it. And maybe we get a little cooler temperature. People be outside. It's going to be great. Clarim, let's talk about students, faculty and staff and how do you involve them in planning the activities and include them in things? [00:13:13] Speaker C: Okay, just let me start by saying that Shawn and I believe that involving the entire campus community is essential to the success of the team. Right. So having said that, what we have done is what I've just mentioned before, gathering the words of everybody in the committee and Come up with a plan based on that. But in addition, gathering the buy in from the faculty, staff and students so they can participate. We can have wonderful events, but if we don't have engagement in the events, they're not going to take advantage of what we have to offer and the awareness is not going to be there. So thankfully, through your office and the help of Christina, we had a very robust committee made out of faculty. And then of course we have Wendy, who's always a great resource, Wendy Garcia from Student Life shout out to her. She's supporting us tremendously, not only with engaging the students from sga, but also from giving us an avenue to support these events and just make it in a way that is interesting to students and the students can engage in. [00:14:09] Speaker A: Yeah, the committee's important to be a part of the work. Sean, talk about how students and staff who might not identify as Hispanic can participate or contribute in this celebration. [00:14:20] Speaker B: Well, our campus is all about inclusivity. Claram just mentioned a lot of different things about in terms of getting people to buy in. It's a celebration. It's a celebration of people. It's not just about being Hispanic. It's about being a person who just appreciates another culture. And here at Miami Dade College, Kendall campus, or I think in Dade county altogether, I think there's a large appreciation for no matter where you come from, everybody has a story, everybody had a fight, everybody has a struggle. So it's not just about being Hispanic. You come and celebrate with us. This is Hispanic Heritage Month. But at the end of the day, we're just celebrating people and celebrating cultures. Every month here that we do something, African American history or Pride Month, we celebrate, you know, it's about making sure that everybody feels like they're a part of something. So that's how we, that's how we do it. Like in our committee, it's not just compromise of Hispanic, there's different, varying cultures on it. But it's, you know, come on, let's celebrate. Let's do this. Let's do something fun. Let's come together. Let's do something where everybody can remember different things. And at the end of the day, yeah, we're gonna celebrate different countries of the Hispanic of Latin America and the Hispanic realm. But it's all about inclusivity. So we want everybody involved. [00:15:28] Speaker A: Yeah. And that's what makes our college so unique. As you both have said, you know, all the countries that come to us and people that come here and see this is a new life for them, a new way to start over. And there's so many great stories that we need to hear. And so this is just a great month. I agree. And Hispanic is the first of many great months that we're going to celebrate. Clarine, in what ways do community efforts help promote inclusivity and culture awareness on campus beyond just this month of celebration? [00:15:56] Speaker C: Well, community and committee efforts are basically at the heart of what we do, not only for this month, but also for the reminder of the year. Because Miami Dade College is one of the largest Hispanic serving institutions in the country. The country United States has 571. We're number five. That's pretty big. What we tried to do, and I believe that what happened during the Mexican Independence Day is a testament of how the community helps, is that we try to involve community leaders such as the leader of our county, the major Danitra Levi in Cava, to come to the campus and to advocate for the activities that we do. But throughout the year, we try to embed a lot of the essence of us as Hispanics into different events and even other committees. For example, when we celebrate Women History Month, which is try to highlight the successful Hispanic women that we have, not only in the campus, but across our student body and our community at Miami Dade. In addition to that, we partner with STITCHES a lot because STITCHES is a grant that support Hispanic students. And we do a lot of events with that, including our STEM date. And we make it basically a part of everything we do at Miami Dade College. It's basically our essence. This is Miami. [00:17:05] Speaker A: It is Miami. As you think about you two growing up, what are ways you celebrated Hispanic Month or what are ways your family celebrated that kind of shaped you to this point? [00:17:15] Speaker C: Well, to begin with, of course, I grew up in Cuba, and everybody knows how that goes. However, a big part of celebrating our culture is food. We celebrate it through food. And not necessarily throughout the month, but throughout the year. We were very conscious of that. And when we came to Miami, which just felt so at home, right? And then we continued the celebrations, I Finally, after 19 years of living, I discovered that Hispanic heritage was a thing, right? And then el Dio de la spanidad was something that we're supposed to celebrate and treasure. Especially when I started as a student here at Miami Dade College. Since then, everything changed because as a student, I became very involved. And then, of course, you know, with my family, I created awareness as I started having nephews and nieces. Then I started bringing them to campus or taking them to other community events for Hispanic heritage. So I have to Say that, you know, since I arrived to the country has. [00:18:04] Speaker B: It has been better for myself. It's kind of bouncing off of what Claram said. Food is definitely driven by. It's just the different cultures having the different foods. And every time you. I grew up with friends who were Nicaraguan myself, Cuban. I'm half Cuban, but I was born in Puerto Rico, so I kind of see how they're both celebrated. But it's about every time I'm around people who are from Nicaragua, for example, it's like, oh, you celebrate La Purissima, which is like during the holidays, it's the celebration of. I don't want to butcher this, but it's the celebration of the Virgin Mary. I want to believe. So they sit around and they, you know, they basically prayer and they do these songs. And only Nicaraguan people would know about this. And then there's the Puerto Ricans celebrate Los Tres Reyes Magos. You know, that's something that's not celebrated here. So. And even today, it's like Mexican, the real Mexican Independence Day, not the Cinco de Mayo that a lot of people, other people want to believe. So it's just as you get to know people and you get to know where they're from and what they've celebrated, you get to learn some of this. And that's what makes the Hispanic culture so fascinating. Even though we're on under the umbrella of Hispanic. So many different countries have so many different things, and every time you get to know about a new celebration, it's just fascinating, like learning what their beliefs are and what they like to celebrate. So that. That to me, is very. How do I say this? It's a blessing. [00:19:24] Speaker A: You know, this is a great year for Miami Dade College because this summer we'll celebrate 100 years of the Freedom Tower. [00:19:31] Speaker B: Wow. [00:19:32] Speaker A: 100 years that. Thinking back to your Cuba story, the Freedom Tower, I think, has been closed for a little over a year and a half, and none of us have seen it. But we will have a big event, I think, this July to recognize that important event. Anything else either of you like to bring up about Hispanic Heritage Month that I didn't mention? Did we hit everybody? [00:19:49] Speaker C: I didn't have a question, really, but I just wanted to give you an open invitation for you to share how much you have done as a leader for our campus to support our Hispanic heritage. And also your cabinet, they have been great, and so you're aware of everything they have done to support our community. So I just wanted you to talk a little bit about that, well, you. [00:20:05] Speaker A: Know, this has been such a great campus. First of all, everybody has opened up so well to my time here, and I just see so much diversity everywhere I go, every event I go to. You know, we started men's and women's soccer recently. We filled the stands up for men's and had the women's full before the weather got us. I just think the diversity in this campus is one of the many strengths, plus the brilliant students we have, faculty and staff. It's just a holistic environment that makes me proud to be a part of. I grew up in Texas where our Hispanic was the Mexican Hispanic, and it's a lot different here. It's a lot more diverse, a lot more culture. As you mentioned, Shawn, the history is what was so unique. Even as I left the Mexican independence night last Saturday, my wife and I pulled up on the phone. We were reading more about the years and more about the information. There were some characters that had dressed up about some famous individuals. So I just think I'm enjoying every day being a part of this campus. And I can't wait to go through this month and Women's History month and African American Month and all the other great things we have. So it's just a blessing. Whatever our cabinet can do is just sort of. It's easy for us to sign a check. You guys are doing the hard work making these amazing events, inviting these wonderful people, and I'm just honored to be a part of this team. [00:21:20] Speaker C: So thank you for your support. [00:21:21] Speaker A: Dr. Storn, any question? One of the things we did in our first podcast, our student government association asked me a question. So we're going to make that a part of every podcast. If you have anything you'd like to ask me, I'm happy to try to answer it. [00:21:34] Speaker B: So you're a well known. Everybody knows you like to grill and smoke food, right? So I think this year you should do un caja China with Lechona Source. I think you need to try that. Will you be willing to try that for the campus? [00:21:47] Speaker A: Are you going to tell me what that is or did I just have to say yes? [00:21:50] Speaker B: So the kahachina is the. When you roast the pig and what they call. There's a brand name is kajachina. I don't know if it's still, but it's in a box basically where you roast the pig under some charcoal and you roast it for a few hours. So it's basically like the Cuban version of smoking food. I would say yes. And you do. And you you put mojo on the pig and you season the pig with narangja, agria and sazon and all that seasoning, you know, a bitter orange juice, and you, you cook the pig for a few hours. So I think what I'm asking is, are you willing to try something like that for the campus? [00:22:25] Speaker A: I am in. You're making me hungry. Just have you describe it. So I'm in. [00:22:29] Speaker C: Seconds out. [00:22:31] Speaker A: Well, I want to thank you both for being here today. This has been a great discussion. I'm so excited for the month to get rolling and all these great events, they're on my calendar and it's just going to be awesome to do these. So thank you for being a part of our third Kendyl Speak series. We're also open to other topics and look forward to future ones. I want to take a minute to thank our head writer, Christine Saenz, Paul Klein, our executive producer, and Alex Bello, our producer today for this wonderful podcast. Please enjoy Hispanic Heritage Month and goodbye for now.