FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Thursday, April 26, 2001

Media Contacts:
Mary Spletter (510) 987-9004
mary.spletter@ucop.edu

TWO UC CAMPUSES RECEIVE GRANTS TO INCREASE GRADUATION RATES FOR LATINOS IN CALIFORNIA

The University of California announced today (Thursday, April 26) that it
will participate in a $28 million, nationwide initiative aimed at
increasing high school and college graduation rates among Latinos.

As part of the initiative sponsored by the W.K. Kellogg Foundation of
Battle Creek, Mich., UC Santa Barbara has received a $1.5 million grant and
UC Irvine is a key partner with Santa Ana College that received $1.6
million grant.

"The University of California system is proud to be part of these
groundbreaking partnerships with the community that reinforce our mission
to serve all populations in California," said C. Judson King, UC provost
and senior vice president of academic affairs.

"Latino graduates increasingly will play major leadership roles in guiding
the future of California. We hope these future leaders receive their
diplomas from our campuses," added King.

The funds support 13 community partnerships formed by colleges,
universities, students, parents, businesses and local schools in seven
states with large Latino populations Arizona, California, Florida,
Illinois, New Mexico, New York and Texas.

For many, this effort represents the first time that Latino education has
been placed at the center of community-wide efforts to work across social,
economic and educational boundaries, according to the Kellogg Foundation.

The UC Santa Barbara-developed program will benefit students in Santa
Barbara and Ventura counties. Many community groups and leaders contributed
to the plan, which was funded by a $100,000 Kellogg planning grant last year.

"Ours is a program that honors and respects Latino tradition and culture
and builds on that in a way that will enrich the experience both of
students and of local schools," said UCSB Chancellor Henry T. Yang.
"Working together, we will strive to enhance higher-education opportunities
for students who historically have not been as well represented at the
university level as they deserve to be."

UC Irvine will collaborate with the Santa Ana College-led program, which
involves the city of Santa Ana, Santa Ana Unified School District and
California State University in, Fullerton, as well as parents, community
and business organizations.

"For too long, educational reform has focused on deficits," said Manuel N.
Gomez, UC Irvine's vice chancellor of student affairs who has been
appointed the interim UC vice president for educational outreach. "The
Santa Ana program sees all students as assets, not problems. The promise
for Latino students should be the same as for all students: high
expectations, high achievements and great success."

The Orange County community of Santa Ana, with a Spanish-surname population
totaling nearly 80 percent, is the most Latino city in the nation,
according to census projections.

Designed to support or strengthen programs over a four-year period, the
Kellogg Foundation grants center on programs from pre-kindergarten through
college. Specific strategies vary at each site, but the programs will focus
on young people at all points of the educational pathway.

Programs for college students will focus on increased academic support and
attention to specific retention issues that Latino students face.
Strategies for high school students will involve greater academic and test
preparation, parental involvement, mentoring and internship opportunities.
Efforts for middle-grade students will promote greater literacy and early
awareness of college and careers. Projects for primary-grade students will
involve increasing literacy and establishing life-long learning habits.

# # #

For more information about the Kellogg Foundation grants on specific
campuses, please contact Bill Schlotter at UC Santa Barbara, (805)
893-8735, or Karen Young at UC Irvine, (949) 824-6925.