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Robustly attended by members of the Humboldt Park and �ϰ��ſ����� communities, “Collaborative Pathways: Bridging Barriers to Education” was the successful first entry in a planned series of outreach events between the University and various Chicago community partners. Hosted at the community center, the event featured a panel discussion on educational access for marginalized Hispanic and immigrant communities. 

Hosted by RU cultural anthropology professor Laura Nussbaum-Barberena, the panel consisted of Jose M. Muñoz (CEO of La Casa Norte), Blanca Jara (Chief of Staff for ) and Juan Carlos Linares (President and CEO of ). All three discussed challenges facing immigrant communities in the United States with special emphasis on Latino and Spanish-speaking communities in regards to education. Students in these demographics often face language barriers, underfunded local schools and lack of financial support to pursue higher education.

The panel also stressed the importance of mentorship. “It’s so crucial for us to have a counselor or mentor who looks like us or speaks our language,” said Juan Carlos Linares, whose Association House organization runs an alternative high school for youth aged 16-20. “Seeing a successful professional from our community or being exposed to different kinds of professions can alter your life at a young age, and it’s our duty to expose people to as many futures as possible.” 

“People need to realize that college financing and career mentorship is extremely important and an exceptional privilege,” said Bianca Jara, who also works as a college advisor. “When people from our community are given guidance and the proper tools from someone legitimately invested in their success, they do as well as anyone else. But when someone has to pursue a career or college application process in a school system that doesn’t have a counselor or the infrastructure to guide them, of course we are going to be underrepresented at universities and therefore professional fields”

Established in 2002 on Chicago’s West Side, La Casa Norte now annually serves 23,000 community members—primarily from the Hispanic community—with diverse programming that includes temporary housing, immigration case management, health services and afterschool programs for aspiring college students.

Jose Muñoz, the CEO of La Casa Norte, offered his organization as an example of how inter-community investment and holistic solutions result in higher education success for the Latino community. “Our organization is contently working to partner with organizations like Howard Brown Health and use our space to house homeless individuals, which ensures that fundamentals like health and safety are accounted for. We need those building blocks in place, and then students are able to emulate these community-building approaches in the application to higher education.”