A Note from Western Region VP Al Mijares

Jan. 2010

Western News

VP Al Mijares

The higher education team here in the Western Region has met with the state offices of higher education in Arizona, California, Colorado, Nevada, Utah and Washington to share the findings of The 6th Annual AP Report to the Nation. The AP Report to the Nation results will be released Feb. 10, and a special issue of Connection will report on its findings.

The higher education team here in the Western Region has met with the state offices of higher education in Arizona, California, Colorado, Nevada, Utah and Washington to share the findings of The 6th Annual AP Report to the Nation. The AP Report to the Nation results will be released Feb. 10, and a special issue of Connection will report on its findings.

We are busy planning for two upcoming conferences in our region, the Western Regional Forum, being held Feb. 27–28, and Prepárate™: Preparing Latino Students for the Future of America, being held March 1–2. Both conferences will be held in La Jolla, Calif., to make it easier for our members to attend. We are excited about the sessions and hope you will plan to be there. There is a special joint registration rate for participants who want to attend both the Western Regional Forum and Prepárate.

The two-day regional forum features an impressive lineup of more than 45 thought-provoking sessions specifically designed to help academic, admission, financial aid, guidance and community college professionals become more successful in their jobs helping students prepare for and achieve college success. The keynote speaker will be Deborah Jewell-Sherman, senior lecturer at the Harvard Graduate School of Education.

College members, don’t forget your business cards and banner for the annual college fair at the Western Regional Forum. This has proven to be an effective way to connect with colleagues on the other side of the desk. If you have any questions about the college fair, please e-mail This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it . College representatives that attend the Western Regional Forum are invited to showcase their college to K–12 educators serving Latino students at the Prepárate conference during the “Café con College: Business Card Exchange” event on Monday, March 1. If you are interested in participating, please This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it your intent with your contact information. You will not need to pay for registration to Prepárate unless you plan to stay beyond “Café con College.”

In other news, Oregon is submitting a Race to the Top proposal to the U.S. Department of Education in the hope of receiving funding. Currently, the state has received six Memoranda of Understanding from different districts in support of the proposal. The proposal is open and designed so that the education reforms can continue after the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act funding has expired. Oregon embraces performance-based learning. Wyoming is also submitting a Race to the Top proposal.

Educators are learning the power of AP Potential™ and the Summary of Answers and Skills from Oregon’s data analysis workshops. Ten districts in northeastern Washington are banding together to provide Pre-AP® professional development in math and English. This same group is working to incorporate 56 other rural districts in the state to grow AVID and connect more students to college success.

In Oregon Schools Superintendent Susan Castillo’s Jan. 7 message, “Unlocking Every Student’s Potential,” she congratulated Avi Levy of West Linn and Lara Dunton of Troutdale as AP State Scholars. Her article outlined AP successes in the state and encouraged districts to do more to connect students to AP.

WRO staff hosted an open house at our San Jose office on Jan. 20. The event allowed district members from around the San Jose area to learn more about College Board programs and services. Six local districts were represented at the workshop. In addition to receiving school-integrated reports and other data, guests were introduced to several programs from the College Board’s College Readiness System™. The WRO plans to host similar events in the spring and fall.