LA HABRA : Upward Bound Is Hailed by Educators

Some 80 students are less likely to become involved with gangs and more likely will return to school this fall as a result of Upward Bound, a new program operated this year by the La Habra City School District.

“School attendance went up. GPAs (grade point averages) went way up. Kids started to feel positive about themselves,” Imperial Middle School Principal Betty Bidwell said.

Bidwell credits the program, conducted by youth and community services coordinator Felipe Plascencia, with improving attitudes and performance.

Plascencia met twice weekly with about 40 students at Imperial School and also with 40 other 7th- and 8th-graders at Washington Middle School.

“We’ve had a really great response from the Spanish-speaking community,” said Rich Hermann, the district’s superintendent. “We feel very privileged to be touched by Felipe and really appreciate the good work he has done. The kids he has worked with have developed strong self-confidence.”

Plascencia, 24, is a 1989 graduate of Cal State Fullerton. He plans to attend law school in the fall. Replacing him as a role model and adviser, Hermann said, will be difficult.

“The students saw me as a friend, not as a teacher,” Plascencia said. They addressed him as “Felipe,” he said, “so that they could immediately relate to me. I didn’t want them to call me mister.”

Teaching youngsters about Latino history was an area of emphasis.

“The reason these kids are involved in gangs is that they don’t know who they are,” Plascencia suggested. “Because they don’t know their history, they hate themselves.”

Plascencia said he used the Socratic method of dialogue in small group settings and tried to develop critical thinking skills.

“When we talked about gangs, we asked, ‘What can you do when this happens?’ or ‘What are some of the negative things that occur when you are involved in this type of thing?’

“I used a lot of whys, “ he said. “Sometimes, I could see them trying to come up with solutions or answers to my questions. When I saw that happen, I knew I was doing my job.”

Plascencia said he sees parents as the key to success for most children.

“They have to understand the situation their kids are in,” he said. “They have to be supportive, to encourage their kids, to keep a positive attitude.”

The future lawyer said he hopes to settle in Orange County but he also intends to remain active with children.

“For me, the more kids I reach, the better,” he said.