
The University of New Mexico
NEWS RELEASE
Media Contact: Carolyn Gonzales, 505-277-5920
cgonzal@unm.edu
August 20, 2007
UNM High School Equivalency Program To Receive More Than $2 Million from U.S. Department of Education Office of Migrant Education
HEP graduation ceremony scheduled for Saturday, Sept. 22
The University of New Mexico’s High School Equivalency Program, or HEP, has received $405,765 for the first year of a new five-year funding cycle, according to information from the U.S. Department of Education and the Office of New Mexico Senator Pete Domenici.
HEP, operated out of UNM’s College Enrichment & Outreach Programs under the Office of the Vice President of Student Affairs, will receive more than $2 million in funding over the course of its new funding cycle, continuing a successful program that has aided hundreds of New Mexico students over the last five years, according to Eliseo “Cheo” Torres, vice president of Student Affairs.
The purpose of HEP is to recruit, assess, and provide GED and ESL instruction, life-skill workshops, job-readiness training, and concurrent support services such as childcare, stipends and transportation, for 60 migrant and seasonal farmworkers or their offspring each year. The objectives of the project are to have at least 65 percent of UNM HEP participants successfully complete their GEDs, and to have at least 85 percent of UNM HEP graduates move into a post-secondary education program, land a career position, or gain entrance to the military.
“We are delighted that this program has been renewed for another five-year funding cycle, since this program has helped many New Mexicans to improve their lives by completing their high school diploma and going on to higher education, vocational training, a career position, or the military,” Torres said. “Some HEP participants who have received their GEDs are now at UNM or at Central New Mexico Community College,” he added.
According to statistics provided by HEP Student Program Specialist Susy Sarmiento, in all, some 225 HEP students have come through the program during the current five year cycle ending this year, and 130 HEP students have successfully passed the GED and graduated from the program. Fourteen graduates have gone on to attend UNM, while the other graduates have been placed at CNM or in jobs.
“We’re excited to have received this grant again because we will be adding a new residential component and know that we will be able to do additional outreach to the more rural communities in southern New Mexico,” said Sarmiento. “We look forward to collaborating with many agencies in order to better serve the migrant population in our state.”
The 2007 HEP graduation ceremony, to be held Saturday, Sept. 22, at 1 p.m. at the UNM Student Union Building, will feature 29 successful HEP graduates, 22 of whom are from the Albuquerque area, with the remaining seven students are from Hatch, in southern New Mexico. Torres and Associate Vice President Tim Gutierrez will provide welcoming remarks for the ceremony, at which students will be receiving their completion certificates.
For more information please contact Susy Sarmiento at 505-277-0276 or susy@unm.edu.
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