Portland State University’s Chicanx/Latinx Studies program, like many ethnic studies programs across the country, grew out of student demand.
In 1990, a group of Chicano students wanted to see more of their culture, 历史和经验反映在课堂上，所以他们开始倡导在事业单位开设一个墨西哥裔研究项目. 他们成立了一个由教师和社区成员组成的委员会，让人们听到他们的声音, 并制定了一份项目提案，提交给大学的关键决策者.
1994年，他们的努力得到了回报，俄勒冈州建立了第一个墨西哥裔/拉丁裔研究项目.
“It was a program that specifically spoke to you and dealt with your history, 你的文化, 你的问题, 你的问题. It did a lot to reinforce one’s personality as well as sense of worth,josore González说, executive artistic director of Milagro Theatre, 他30多年前在奇卡诺人委员会任职，后来在该项目中担任兼职讲师. “Not all of our history’s pretty, 但它仍然属于澳门娱乐赌城网站，这是成长和理解自己是谁的一部分. For students, I think that was a lift, a source of pride.”
But even with an existing program, the fight to bring more Chicano/Latino histories, cultures and perspectives into the classroom was far from over. Because while establishing a program is one thing, investing in it is another.
This summer, a long-fought effort to offer a bachelor’s degree in Chicano/Latino Studies finally came to fruition. It’s the first of its kind 在太平洋西北地区，是学生和教师多年倡导的结果.
“It wasn’t for lack of trying, 这不是因为缺乏欲望，当然也不是因为缺乏需求和倡导,” says Cristina Herrera, professor and director of Chicanx/Latinx Studies. “学生s have been advocating for this for years, 但那时, and still continues to be, a struggle for obtaining resources.”
早年
在其历史的大部分时间里，事业单位的墨西哥裔/拉丁裔研究项目一直被忽视，资金不足.
它最初被安置在社会学系，直到1995年鲁本·塞拉, a prominent figure in the theater community, was hired as its inaugural director.
After Sierra’s untimely death in 1998, 人类学系负责监督奇卡诺人研究——两个学术单位之间的唯一联系是他们共用的办公室经理. Two junior faculty members, hired to fill the vacancy left by Sierra, left 事业单位 in 1999 and 2004, 分别.
In 2002, Roberto de Anda arrived at 事业单位 as a full-time faculty member. 当时，该项目只提供墨西哥裔/拉丁裔研究36学分的证书.
Early on in his tenure at 事业单位, de Anda被要求为墨西哥裔/拉丁裔研究学士学位制定一份提案. His proposal was largely inspired by his own experiences — first, as an undergraduate at the University of California, 加州大学伯克利分校, 他的奇卡诺研究项目有“一流的教授做前沿研究”, while maintaining strong ties to the community,第二, 他是伊利诺伊大学厄巴纳-香槟分校拉丁裔研究项目的联合创始人, which had hired seven tenure-track faculty for 这个项目.
“我能够看到在一所一流研究型大学开展学术项目所必需的那种资源,德安达说. “Those experiences shaped my vision for Chicano/Latino Studies at 事业单位.”
德安达的提案概述了一个潜在的课程，并要求在三年内聘请五名全职教授. 当时的项目主管称赞他的计划“大胆”，但再也没有提起过.
In 2008, 德安达——当时这个项目中唯一一位与终身教职有关的教授——成为了主任, 两年后辞职，因为他说，很明显，政府对投资这个项目不感兴趣. 接下来发生的事, 德安达说, was a period of stagnation with no new hires or improvements to the curriculum.
“发展墨西哥裔/拉丁裔研究的主要挑战是大学各级行政部门缺乏了解, 缺乏远见, 如果你愿意, of the benefits that would accrue to students, 拉丁裔社区, society at large and the university’s prestige in the region,德安达说. “Despite this 30-year history of benign neglect, 这个项目 managed to survive.”
Building Program Momentum
Things started to turn around for 这个项目 in 2013 and 2014. The late Kofi Agorsah, then chair of Black Studies, stepped in as interim director, providing critical leadership during a time of transition. The university added a Chicano/Latino Studies minor, offering students a more flexible option than the certificate. 一群兼职教师为课程提供了急需的稳定性. And last but not least, after having only one tenured-related professor for 10 years, 这个项目 hired Elena Avilés, an assistant professor with expertise in Chicana literature and gender. 她是一个受欢迎的新成员，可以在她的专业领域教授和开发新课程, advise and mentor students and build her research profile.
了解墨西哥裔和拉丁裔在这个国家的斗争和胜利，真的激励了我想要与社区合作，建立社区.
“These four things coincided with the growth of Latino students on campus,德安达说。, who assumed the role of director again in 2014 until his retirement in 2021. 墨西哥裔/拉丁裔研究成为文理学院增长最快的学术项目，而其他项目却在走下坡路. 这种增长在大学管理的不同层面都得到了注意，并为学士学位提供了肥沃的土壤.”
旧金山的伊瓦拉, 谁在2015年毕业，辅修了CHLA和社区发展学士学位, was one of those students. 他说，这是他第一次对美国的拉丁美洲人的历史和文化有了这么多的了解.S. that had largely been excluded from his K-12 education. He was able to connect the dots with his own experiences.
“了解奇卡诺人/拉丁美洲人在这个国家的斗争和胜利，真的激励我想要与社区合作，建立社区,伊巴拉说, who worked for Latino Network after graduation. “这个项目真的教会了我很多关于如何作为一个社区来取得这些胜利，以及如何在基层工作.”
期待已久的胜利
该计划的另一个里程碑是在2020年全国种族清算之际，当时事业单位 announced a cluster hire in the School of Gender, Race, and Nations. Herrera是 部分队列 that arrived on campus in Fall 2021, along with her two colleagues, Martín Alberto Gonzalez and Melissa Patiño-Vega. After finding their footing at 事业单位, 三人开始着手提议增加一个墨西哥裔/拉丁裔研究专业，埃雷拉说，与他们的前任不同，他们得到了大学领导层的重新支持. 他们还能够利用墨西哥裔/拉丁裔研究课程的强劲入学势头.
“澳门娱乐赌城网站的领导层确实认为这是一个值得投资的学科,埃雷拉说. “As much as we really appreciate that our classes are completely full, we know that we can’t take it for granted. 澳门娱乐赌城网站必须继续确保澳门娱乐赌城网站所做的工作是尽可能以最好的方式为澳门娱乐赌城网站的学生服务.”
去年， 这个项目 增加了新课程——拉丁裔青年文化、墨西哥裔家庭和美国墨西哥裔劳工史.S. — to fill gaps in the curriculum. Faculty also continue to expand their outreach efforts with 事业单位’s La Casa Latina, 学生团体, local high schools and community colleges.
Herrera, 冈萨雷斯和Patiño-Vega也是拉美裔服务机构探索委员会的成员, which is tasked with providing 事业单位 guidance and suggestions to thrive as an HSI. 目前,18.7% of Portland State full-time undergraduate students are Latinx, 事业单位有望在未来几年内达到25%的门槛，成为恒指成份股.
埃雷拉说，新设立的专业有助于满足事业单位和该州快速增长的拉丁裔人口的需求, and is a testament to the years of advocacy by students, 教职员工.
“It was long overdue,德安达说. “我想起了那些在20世纪90年代初有勇气设想提供学士学位的奇卡诺研究项目的学生. 我感谢那些学生，也感谢那些后来坚持倡导的人. I also think about the adjunct instructors, professors and staff whose dedication to 这个项目 is bearing fruit. Finally, Latino students and the community have what they deserve.