21 local Hispanic students attend Puerto Rican Hispanic Youth Leadership Institute through OCM BOCES

Through the OCM BOCES Regional Bilingual Education Resource Network (RBERN,) 21 local Hispanic students recently had the opportunity to attend the 24th Annual Puerto Rican Hispanic Youth Leadership Institute (PRHYLI) in Albany, NY.  The PRHYLI introduces Hispanic high school students to New York State’s legislative process and civic issues affecting the Latino community while fostering such skills as debate, citizenship and leadership.

The event is a collaborative effort among Regional Bilingual Education Resource Networks, The NYS Education Office of Bilingual Education and Foreign Language Studies, The NYC Department of Education and the NYS Assembly’s Hispanic Task Force.



The 21 Hispanic students were selected from the following nine mid-state high schools:

Cicero-North Syracuse High School: Aaliyah Muolo Vergara;

Fowler High School: Moises Gracciano, Mario Cabral, Neyshmaire Meléndez, and Abigail Rivera;

Liverpool High School: Yaritza Bague;

Corcoran High School: Yadimar Narvaez and Alondra Peña-Merced;

Henninger High School: Alia Anamaria;

Jamesville-DeWitt High School: Ana Carolina Piedra;

Proctor High School: Jennifer Difo and Lorena Difo;

Ithaca High School: Lilia Escobedo, Félix Fernández-Penny, Alejandra Flores Ramírez, Eitan Mizrachi, Vanessa Navarro Rodríguez and Belén Santa Ana; and

Solvay High School: Karissa Benz, Mahalia Rivera and Kevin Vreeland.

Event chaperones were Ofelia Villareeal and Barb Bergman, led by Sally Doran of the Mid-State RBERN. These students formed the Syracuse Delegation and trained together for four days at La Casita Cultural Center in areas directly linked to the Common Core Learning Standards and the New York State Social Studies Standards, assisted by Ed Thater. The ultimate goal of the trainings is to carry out a mock assembly while practicing their leadership skills.

Approximately 206 Hispanic students from a total of eight total delegations from across New York State met for the culminating three-day event on March 22 through 24. This year's team building activity, “Frame and Re-Frame Leading from Understanding,” led by Giselle O. Martin-Kniep, President of Lerner-Centered Initiatives, Ltd., was held at the Albany Desmond Hotel. The students were split into groups, given guidelines and criteria and challenged to dig deep, discuss then create presentations that would inform, inspire and change the way people think about bullying. Our students Jennifer Difo and Alia Anamaria were moderators of the general session on Saturday.

Regent Betty A. Rosa from New York City/Bronx spoke to the students as well as the Associate Commissioner for the State Office of Bilingual Education and Foreign Language Studies, Angélica Infante-Green, who commended the students for their interests, accomplishments and hard work. A fantastic speaker, Barbara Coloroso offered an inspirational presentation on bullying and each student received her book: The Bully, the Bullied, and the Bystander.

Once in the Assembly Chambers of the State Capitol building, the group debated five bills that are currently before the Assembly. During opening ceremonies,  Féliz Fernández-Penny with the Syracuse Delegation, performed an exceptional A capella version of the Puerto Rican National Anthem. During the awards banquet that followed, 35 seniors were awarded scholarships on a competitive basis for their achievements and performance. The Syracuse Delegation had two winners: Vanessa Navarro and Eitan Mizrachi. In addition, one student per delegation was nominated “outstanding delegate.” A “Delegate of the year” is chosen by a select panel of evaluators over the course of the weekend; the Syracuse Delegation's Ana Carolina Piedras, who also had the role of Majority Leader this year, came in 2nd place! What an honor!

Students were escorted to the simultaneously held adult conference, “Somos Uno,” an organization dedicated to the dialog of Hispanic issues and policy making representing all aspects of government, business, and community. There they heard from NYS Assemblymen such as Phil Ramos and Félix Ortíz. Rounding out this life-changing weekend, the students had an educational opportunity to learn about Latin music “From Africa to New York: Latin Music in the New World” by Dr. José Cruz; they danced to Salsa, Bachata, Merengue and Regetón!  And finally, The Jerk Whisperer, Dr. Stephen “Bird” Birchak from the College of Saint Rose, Albany, offered a truly remarkable presentation on bullying that will not be forgotten by any who was present. Dr. Bird was so inspirational you could hear a pin drop. This was truly a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for high school Hispanic students of New York State.

For information on applying for next year's Syracuse Delegation, e-mail Sally Doran at sdoran@ocmboces.org or call 433-2664 for details.