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CTN RECEPTION CELEBRATES ORGANIZATION'S TENTH YEAR
The Ascender Fall Seminar Reception, titled "Empowering the Minds that will Lead the World," was the Tenth Year Celebration of the founding of Catch the Next and was held on Friday, October 25th at 6:00 pm at the Hotel Indigo in San Antonio.
As people filled their plates and networked, they listened to music provided by Juan and Armando Tejeda, who just finished a CD titled “Raiz XicanX.”
Dr. Chavez then welcomed guests and presented background and plans for Catch the Next. Distinguished guests included former Interim Student Affairs at Palo Alto College, Rosie Castro; Alamo College District trustees, Clint Kingsbery and Jose Macias; Dean of Dean for Academic Success at Northeast Lakeview College, Tammy Perez; TACHE state president, Dr. Dan Rodriguez; and TACHE Central Region Representative, Dr. Celestino Valentin and his wife, Dr. Marie Valentin.
Lisa Trevino introduced Dr. Robert Garza, President of Palo Alto College, who then spoke about the need for and impact of the Ascender program at his college. He shared his own background and why he was the type of student who would have benefitted from the program.
Diane Lerma introduced Erin Doran, CTN Director of Research and Evaluation, who asked a panel of alumni questions regarding their experiences in the program. The panel included Juan Higa, Veronica Gonzalez and Blanca Paredes. (After the reception, the panel was asked to speak at the Alamo College District’s trustee board meeting in December.)
The keynote speaker for the evening was Emmy Perez, 2020 Texas Poet Laureate. At the closing of her presentation, she discussed and shared her “Poets Against Walls Video Collage”, a writing collective in the Rio Grande Valley.
Special recognition went to CTN’s founding members from Palo Alto College, Diane Lerma, Dr. Dan Rodriguez, Dr. Yolanda Reyna and Dr. Rafael Castillo along with Dean Bischoff, who is retiring from STC. Each received a plaque honoring their contributions to the CTN program.
Dr. Rogelio Saenz, CTN Board Member and Dean of the College of Public Policy at the University of Texas at San Antonio, provided the closing for the evening.
