Latino Students Celebrate Heritage, CSUN Graduation

When Laura Murillo came to this country 10 years ago from her native Mexico City to take a computer class, she was supposed to stay for only a short time.

Then life stepped in.

She got married, had two children and divorced. Although she longed to see her family, she decided to jump-start her education and enrolled at Cal State Northridge.

“I’m proud of my accomplishments, but it wouldn’t be possible without help from this country,” said Murillo, who’s graduating this week with a bachelor’s degree in international business. “It was very stressful being a mom and a student, but I kept pushing on.”

Murillo, 33, celebrated her cultural heritage and academic achievements Saturday with about 150 classmates at CSUN’s 27th Chicano Latino Graduation Ceremony, held at the University Club garden area.

All of the students wore traditional dress reflecting their Latino culture.

The ceremony is meant to provide a sense of community for minority students who say they often suffer from culture shock at large, impersonal universities, said Raul Ruiz, a Chicano Studies professor at CSUN.

“This is also a way for the students to say thanks to their families in their native language,” Ruiz said. “They are proud of their culture, but they are also proud they got an education in this country and will use it here.”

Similar ethnic graduations for Latino, black, Asian and Native American students are held throughout the California State and University of California systems and at several private schools. Such events are meant to supplement university commencement ceremonies, not to replace them, Ruiz said.

Cultural graduation ceremonies are not officially recognized nor sponsored by the Cal State system, said Carmen Ramos Chandler, a spokeswoman at CSUN.

“We’re happy for the students and their families, but we officially recognize the graduates during commencement ceremonies sponsored by the Cal States,” she said. “The only entity that can have a formal graduation is the university.”

Nonetheless, many students and families saw Saturday’s intimate ceremony as a chance to celebrate.

Although they were told to give 30-second speeches, many students got caught up in the moment while thanking family, friends and lovers in both Spanish and English. Many were overwhelmed with emotion and cried during their speeches. Others belted out loud gritos, or shouts of joy. Most of the students spoke of hardships, love and hope for the future.

“My favorite part was the speeches because we get to speak from our hearts,” said biology major Audrey Alvarez, 24, of Los Angeles. “We get to express our gratitude to the people we love for all their help.”

“Si se puede,” or “It can be done”--the rallying cry originated by the United Farm Workers--was echoed throughout the day in student and faculty speeches.

Students didn’t need to worry about tripping on long black robes at this ceremony.

Instead, they dressed in clothing reflecting their native cultures of Mexico, El Salvador, Guatemala and other countries. The most popular style of dress among men and women was that of the Mexican mariachi, complete with tight jackets, pants and a huge sombrero.

“This is their day to shine as a culture,” Ruiz said. “We just want to highlight and acknowledge the vast Latino community at our college.”

A motivation to be the first in the family to graduate from college compelled Manuel Cruz to earn his degree in music. Not everyone in Cruz’s family speaks English, so this ceremony was considered a special moment for his family.

“It gives me pride to represent my culture with the people I love most,” said Cruz, 24, of Northridge. “I’m here today to be a good example to my little sister so I can watch her graduate from a university someday too.”

For Murillo, the ceremony was exhausting and exciting all at once, a culmination of the long nights of studying she endured.

“I did this because I want to be a role model to my children,” she said. “I want to show that you can come from a Latino community, remember your roots and still succeed.”