NASPA Board Votes to Honor Contract for 2012 NASPA Annual Conference in Phoenix

Message from NASPA President Elizabeth Griego

In its meeting by conference call on June 18, the NASPA Board of Directors voted to honor its contractual commitments to host the 2012 NASPA Annual Conference in Phoenix, and to use the conference program "as an opportunity to address AZ SB 1070 and issues of immigration, social justice, and human dignity."

Background and Information

In making its decision about whether to hold its national conference in Phoenix in 2012 in light of passage of Arizona Senate Bill 1070, the Board of Directors considered a statement submitted by the Latino/a Knowledge Community, as well as comments from many others. In preparation for the Board meeting and vote, NASPA Board members and staff conducted research and corresponded and talked with many NASPA members, education leaders, other association leaders, NASPA's regional and divisional advisory boards, members of Arizona's Region VI Executive Board, and leaders in NASPA's knowledge communities. The wealth of information reviewed and consulted by the entire Board revealed the range of information and opinions put forward to inform the decision about the 2012 conference location.

In reviewing the possibilities, NASPA attorneys were consulted about any possible legal basis for canceling the contracts. Upon review, the attorneys were of the opinion that NASPA would not escape significant liability if we were to cancel. As of this date, the exposure to cancel hotel contracts is $850,000, a significant financial decision for the Association to make. Also, given the financial penalty that would have to be paid to the hotels in Arizona, the impact of an economic boycott - one of the chief reasons given for supporting the cancellation of the contract - would be negated.

The Board was very much in accord with the thinking of the Latino/a KC statement regarding the negative repercussions of SB 1070. It acknowledged that Arizona's political history has been a concern to NASPA members for some time, including the 1990 failure to establish Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s birthday as a holiday (approved two years later), last year's revocation of health benefits for domestic partners of state employees, and, most recently, banning the teaching of ethnic studies in Arizona public schools. Last year, in response to the decision about health benefits for domestic partners, NASPA chose not to hold its assessment and retention conference in Arizona.

The accompanying personal statement, written by NASPA President-elect Dr. Patricia Telles-Irvin, was read at the Board of Directors conference call and provides further explanation of the stance ultimately taken by the Board.

Next steps

The Board is grateful for the extensive communication extended by the membership around this issue. Following my May 2010 article in the NASPA Forum, I received almost 300 e-mails in response to my views on SB 1070. We acknowledge and honor the passion and commitment of many of our members who stand in fervent opposition to SB 1070. We also acknowledge that there are other NASPA members who favor this legislation and have written in support of it. We respect the right of everyone to hold their informed opinion, and we intend to provide protected and respectful opportunity for ongoing dialogue, beginning with the website blog, continuing with a pre-conference session for the NASPA 2011 conference in Philadelphia, and including attention in the program for the 2012 conference.

In the 2012 conference, we will plan opportunities to meet and work with community leaders, and, if we can get them, state legislators, so that we can understand and perhaps impact one of our country's most pressing issues: immigration reform. We foresee an exciting opportunity in the Phoenix conference to extend the learning for all of us. And finally, we respect the right of persons to boycott Arizona and not attend the 2012 conference in protest of SB 1070, especially those who may not feel safe in the state given this legislation.

Now we need your help. We welcome your reactions to the Board's action and to this letter. Express yourself on the NASPA website. If you would like to work on the pre-conference session on immigration reform for the 2011 conference, we would welcome your ideas and creative energy. Please e-mail Kaaryn Sanon to discuss our plans and find out how you can contribute. Also, if you would like to be involved in reacting to and organizing against SB 1070 with other NASPA members, or if you would like to join in efforts to respond to other states considering similar legislation that could result in discrimination or profiling, please e-mail Kaaryn Sanon. If you would like to communicate your views with your regional vice president or the NASPA Board or the Executive Committee, you may find our e-mail addresses on the board page of the NASPA website.

Thanks to all who wrote with views on this important issue, and special thanks to those willing to become involved.

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Personal Statement of Dr. Patricia Telles-Irvin, NASPA President-elect

NASPA is an organization with members representing more than 1,400 institutions of higher education. As such, NASPA members hold a broad range of perspectives. Consequently, NASPA cannot represent any single political viewpoint. However, we must recognize there are serious societal issues that warrant serious consideration and debate. The Arizona laws regarding undocumented immigrants, ethnic studies and potential birth rights that have recently been brought to our attention raise very serious issues of immigration and economic policy, justice, opportunities, access, fairness, and the role of immigrants in the development and maintenance of American society, among other issues. There have also been laws in this state that have impacted the GLBT community with last year's revocation of health benefits for domestic partners of state employees.

While I personally disagree strongly with these laws, I also understand that my personal views cannot reflect an organizational view for an association with a membership as diverse as NASPA's. It is clear to me, however, that if NASPA is to have its meeting in Arizona, we cannot pretend that the controversies over these laws and the many issues they raise do not exist. As student affairs leaders within institutions of higher education, we need to face these controversies head-on and in a manner that is appropriate for an organization uplifting the values of the student affairs profession. Our institutions impact the minds and souls of students who will lead this country one day. The future of this country depends on them to make good decisions that are honest, thoughtful, and just. Silence is not an option on issues as important and complicated as these.

I want to share with you my personal experience as someone born in the southwest and of Mexican descent. I understand the challenges of the borders and the plight of these immigrants. I also understand that the issues are complicated. In my experience living in my hometown of El Paso, Texas, many undocumented immigrants are encouraged to take jobs other Americans are not willing to assume. Many work hard and contribute to the economy by purchasing goods, keeping prices down, and keeping producers, farmers, and ranchers in business. Among those who cross the border, there are individuals (a small minority, I would say) that have a criminal intent. Unfortunately, in my hometown it appears that the drug cartel has moved to the border town of Juarez, Mexico, and there are killings occurring almost daily. I recall when these two cities worked collaboratively and going across the border either way was safer. There was an appreciation for both cultures by the citizens living in this bicultural region. I do not blame those who are concerned now for their safety. However, the majority of the immigrants are coming out of desperation. One depiction of one such painful, tragic, and true journey immigrants took to find work and to improve the lives of their families can be found in a great book we had our first-year students read last year, The Devil's Highway by Luis Alberto Urrea.

Solutions need to be found, however, I do not think the United States can resolve all these issues alone. There has to be a partnership with other countries; and it is my hope that it happens soon. For most of his career, my father has been a servant leader. He has served this country all his life with great honor and loyalty, and through this he taught me to face any challenge worth facing head-on and with conviction. In 1957, he was elected the first Hispanic mayor of a major city in this country; in 1961, he was the first appointed U.S. ambassador of Hispanic descent; and he was the first Hispanic to serve as a colonel in the Air Force. He also accepted a presidential appointment to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission in Washington, D.C., as one of five commissioners in the early 1970s. In these various roles, he never shied away from trying to correct injustice. He also taught me to love this country; and part of loving this country was contributing to realistic, honest, and humanitarian solutions.

So, as an educational organization that stands for justice, inclusion, and access to education, as well as analyzing and solving the great challenges of our times, we must make a statement by going together and being very purposely present in Arizona with programs that will educate, enhance the dialogue, and reach a greater understanding on issues of immigration, justice, and human dignity.

Our presence is needed. That being said, I ask for the support of the NASPA membership in embracing an approach that deals directly with these laws regarding undocumented immigrants and the concerns of the GLBT community. With that, I would then find myself able to proudly represent NASPA as its president at the 2012 conference in Arizona.

Erika's Story: Driving Through Life on a Bumpy Road

Please enjoy our first feature based on the June 2010 Issue of La Voz eMagazine.

“Why don't you go back to your country?”, “Why don't you just become an American citizen and stop breaking the law?”, “Why do you steal our jobs and our identities?” These are the kinds of questions that I hear from people who don't want me here. People who think I’m a “criminal”, and who judge me because of my legal status in this country. But who are they to judge? If they only knew what I have been through throughout my entire life: the suffering... the pain. I’m not looking for anyone to feel sorry for me, I just want people to understand that I'm not in this country because I want to take jobs, or because I want to break the law, all I want is an opportunity to become a productive citizen, who can do a lot for this country.

Ten years ago, I came to this country with my mother, my sister and my two year-old brother, and even though my mom always tells me not to say it, I am not ashamed of admitting that I am undocumented. My mom brought me here to look for a better quality of life. I also admit that I didn't want to come. I didn't want to leave everything behind; my grandma, my tias (aunts), my best friends, my country... but I had to. My mother had to raise five children on her own, and not only that, she also had to put up with my “dad”, who would beat her up every time he had a chance. We had to move from one place to another, hiding from him. She had a job as a janitor at a school, but it was not enough to feed five children on her own.

Crossing the border was one of the most traumatizing experiences I have ever had. My mother, my sister, my baby brother, and I had to walk for about half a day throughout the Arizona desert. I still remember hiding inside a hole because we heard the immigration trucks driving very close to us. I am still very proud of my little brother, because even though he was only two, he behaved very well and didn't cry at all. If he would have, we would have gotten caught for sure. Finally, we arrived to this wonderful country.

I couldn't believe how different it was from my country; the streets, the stores, the people, the schools, I LOVED IT! Now that I have been here for so long, I feel like this is my home, and I don't want to leave, even though I feel like I'm not wanted here.

I have been attending school since the first week we were here, and at first I hated it because I had no idea what the teacher was saying, and only one girl in my class spoke Spanish. It was like a nightmare, and I thought I was never going to wake up. I learned English in about a year. I couldn't speak it very well, but I could understand most of it. I was getting better grades, and at that point everyone started to realize that I was kind of smart, and I wasn't as stupid for not understanding anything the rest of the kids and my teacher were saying. Once I got to high school, I could speak, read and write English very well, I was on the top five percent of my class, and started getting all types of awards. I also started getting involved in sports and even ended up as the president of our school's Latino Club. Everything was like a dream, until my senior year came.

During my senior year, I realized how hard it is to be an undocumented student in this country. The first few months I was so excited because a lot of my teachers and coaches would tell me that they were proud of me, and that I was for sure going to go to college and that I was going to do great. So I went to talk to the lady in the career center, and she said I had very little possibilities of achieving this because universities did not accept undocumented students and that most scholarships were going to ask me for my social security number. Right at that moment she cut my wings. I went home and asked myself and God, “Why me?” I couldn't understand why I had to suffer so much if it wasn't my idea to come to this country in the first place. I was only eleven, and never took the decision to come here. That same night I came to my senses, and I decided I was not going to give up.

I applied to all the colleges and universities in the State of Arizona, and also to about 15 private scholarships. It was hard work, but it paid off when I got a letter from Arizona State University telling me that I was accepted. That was one of the most exciting days of my life, and the first thing I did the next day was to take the letter to the lady in the career center. I also received 6 scholarships, including 3 full rides to ASU. I know that like her many people are not very well informed of who we are and what kinds of things we can do.

In 2007, Prop 300 passed in Arizona. This law did not allow undocumented students to get in-state tuition and also denied any type of funding from the state to continue our education. They took away all of my scholarships. All those nights I spent filling out scholarship applications, and all of those hours I spent doing community service hours and homework for my AP classes were ignored because of my status. But once again, I decided to not give up and I applied to as many private scholarships as I could. All that hard work paid off again when a community organization awarded me a scholarship that allowed me to complete my education.

In May of 2009 I graduated from Arizona State University with a BA in Psychology. It was the first commencement ceremony that Barack Obama had attended as the new president of the United States. It was a sweet-bitter taste. I was proud of everything I had accomplished, but knowing that at the end of the day, that beautiful diploma from ASU was just a piece of paper that was going to hang on my wall. I was not going to be able to use it because of my status.

I might not able to use my degree, but I still have the power to fight for my family, my community and the people I love. I will not stop until this country realizes that I am not a criminal. I only want an opportunity. They can cut our wings over and over again, but I know they will always grow again, and one day all the DREAMERS and their families will fly freely in this wonderful country. They can make our road bumpy, but we will always keep driving!

The Association of Fraternity and Sorority Advisors Opens Graduate Staff Applications

Calling all graduate students interested in fraternity and sorority advising! Check out the Association of Fraternity/Sorority Advisors' website for information regarding the coveted Graduate Staff application process. Though you won't attend many educational programs, you will get a great experience! The Graduate Staff is an essential part of the staffing for the volunteer-driven meeting and will provide much of the onsite support to the Central Office staff, Annual Meeting Planning Team, and other Annual Meeting volunteers in delivering an excellent experience for attendees.

http://www.fraternityadvisors.org/AnnualMeeting/GradStaff.aspx