Cypress : College Students Offer Thanks for Program

Cypress College students, whose fight for a program that helps Latinos transfer to four-year colleges and universities last year gained momentum when they staged a 24-hour candlelight vigil, lit candles once more this week.

This time, however, the students held their second 24-hour vigil, which ended Thursday morning, in a symbolic gesture of gratitude for the college’s recent decision to bring the Puente Project to campus in the fall.

The program, already offered at 27 other colleges and universities throughout the state, offers a special writing course and individual counseling to students each semester.

It also provides volunteer mentors to help guide students in their chosen careers and requires that the students return to serve as mentors once they’ve graduated.

Cypress College students had pleaded with administrators for more than three years for the program.

“It feels good to know that the students’ voices were heard,” said Geoffrey Richards, 21, a leader behind the push for the program. “Our first vigil was a protest, but this one is a celebration.”

During the recent vigil, an Aztec dancer led a prayer and performed several dances; poets recited their works; and professors and students held discussions on topics relating to Chicano life.

One community activist recalled the struggle for the program in a poem he wrote while participating in last year’s vigil.

“Not enough Chicanos are being transferred from community colleges. . . . The Puente program, for now, is the solution,” Javier A. Cortez, of the Chicano Poet Society, read in a statement. “Maybe if they authorize the program, we can yell, ‘Hooray! Hooray!’ ”

That’s just what students did during this year’s vigil, which included an altar filled with candles and decorated with pinatas and colorful serapes.

The North Orange County Community College District is seeking an English professor to teach the Puente Project writing course.

The professor is expected to be hired by the time the fall semester begins.