Dominican Conference Highlights Diversity of Latino College Students

Melissa Cedillo covered Dominican University's "El Futuro is Here" conference for the National Catholic Reporter and reported that speakers discussed their diverse Latino backgrounds, described by Jeanette Rodriguez, professor of theology and religious studies at Seattle University, as a combination of mestijafe (mixed race), which, in her case, includes family members representing Ecuador. Mexico, Puerto Rico, Germany, Vietnam and Cuba. 

Cedillo reported that participants reflected on the power of memory and the role storytelling plays in the healing process, and shared dichos (sayings) from their own families. 

"El Futuro is Here:Cuentos y Recuerdos for the Journey" was held August 3 -5. It followed the inaugural El Futuro is Here conference held in 2018. Representatives from 50 Catholic colleges and universities and nonprofit organizations participated in the virtual conference.

Read the entire article here.

Illustration is from an original painting, "The Storm,"  by John August Swanson, who was prevented from participating in the closing keynote speech because of poor health.