Mendocino College is a Proud Hispanic-Serving Institution (HSI)
For the last decade, the percentage of Hispanic/Latino students has increased at Mendocino College. Currently, over 40% of our student body identifies as being Hispanic/Latino or of Hispanic/Latino heritage.
What does it mean to be an HSI?
Higher Education Institutions, such as Mendocino College, may be designated as a Hispanic-Serving Institution (HSI) when at least 25% of its undergraduate full-time equivalent students are of Hispanic/Latino heritage.
The word “Hispanic” is the term utilized by the Federal Government; since the HSI designation comes from the Federal Government, the term Hispanic-Serving Institution is utilized to refer to any student with ties to Latin America or other Spanish-speaking countries.
Embracing our HSI Designation
As a college, we are committed to providing students the support Hispanic/Latino students need to be successful in their academic, career, and personal journeys.
For those of us who work at Mendocino College, this includes fostering a sense of belonging, value, support, and advocacy to our Hispanic/Latino Student population.
For our students, this means having the ability to find faculty and staff members who understand and acknowledge the rich experiences, strengths, and values that each of us carry inside of us. We encourage students to step onto the college as their authentic selves, celebrating their identities and the wealth students bring to the classroom in the form of familial support, dichos (sayings), and cultural and ancestral knowledge.
Annual Events
The HSI Event Planning Committee puts on two events during the academic year. This includes the Dia De Los Muertos Event in the Fall which is open to community members, and the Latino Student Retreat which is offered in the Spring and is geared towards high school students from across the Lake and Mendocino area.
- Dia De Los Muertos
- Latino Student Retreat
Music | Dancing | Food | Arts & Crafts | Altares & More
The Hispanic/Latino event planning committee cordially invites you to save the date for the 12th annual Día de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) event.
Day of the Dead celebrations date back thousands of years ago when Indigenous people from central Mexico would honor their deceased by placing food and water offerings on their resting place. In modern-day Day of the Dead celebrations, family members continue to practice these traditions by building altars (altares) where they place pictures of their beloved family members along with food and other items their family members enjoyed during their lifetime.
We hope you join us in an evening of celebrating with music, dancing, piñatas, entertainment & activities. Local vendors will be on-site selling delicious food, too.
If you are interested in putting up an altar in remembrance of a loved one, please email Roberto Renteria at rrenteria@mendocino.edu.
Altars will be on display in the Lowery Student Center from Friday, Oct. 18th until Friday, Oct. 25th.
Event Contact Information
2025 Latinx Student Retreat
Friday, April 25th, 2025
8:15 am - 1:30 pm
ENGLISH:
Thank you for your interest in the 37th Annual Latino Student Retreat, sponsored by Mendocino College. Last year, we had the pleasure of hosting over 350 of our local high school students.
The theme for this year’s event is TBD.
Keynote Speaker: To be announced
Registration Process/Timeline & Workshops
The Registration Process will open in late-February or early March.
Day Of Event Information, Location, and Parking
On the day of the event, please drop off your students near the flag poles on the Mendocino College Ukiah campus. This area is located next to the main Student Services building, MacMillan Hall, and the Theater building.
All students will be asked to wear the event name badge throughout the Latino Student Retreat. Students without a name badge will not be allowed to participate in the activities and will be referred to their chaperone. This is for the safety and security of all students and attendees. Additionally, students will be provided a Latino Student Retreat event t-shirt. Students should wear the t-shirt during the event.
Please speak to your students ahead of time about proper conduct. Traditionally, chaperones and volunteers play a major role in assisting with crowd control and helping create a fun and welcoming atmosphere. For this reason, we ask that you attend the event presentation and workshops with your students. We will also have experienced college students assisting with workshops and chaperoning students.
Any questions should be referred to Juvenal Vasquez by calling 468-3115 or email jvasquez@mendocino.edu. Thank you for all your support! We greatly appreciate your partnership and collaboration in making this a successful event for all of our attendees.
Breakdown of the Day* (Tentative Agenda):
8:15 AM - 8:55 AM: Check-In
9:00 AM - 10:00 AM: Welcome & Keynote
10:10 AM - 11:10 AM: Workshop 1
11:15 AM - 12:15 PM: Workshop 2
12:15 PM - 1:30 PM: Lunch & Resource Fair
SPANISH:
Gracias por su interés en el 37o Retiro Anual de Estudiantes Latinos, patrocinado por el Colegio de Mendocino. El año pasado, tuvimos el placer de recibir a más de 350 estudiantes de las escuelas secundarias locales.
El tema del evento de este año: sera anunciado en el futuro.
Nuestra oradora/orador: sera anunciado en el futuro.
Proceso de Registro/Cronograma y Talleres
El process para registrars comenzará en los ultimos de Febrero o primeros dias de Marzo.
Información del Día del Evento, Ubicación y Estacionamiento
El día del evento, deje a sus estudiantes cerca de los mástiles de bandera en el campus del Colegio de Mendocino en Ukiah. Esta área está ubicada junto al edificio principal de Servicios Estudiantiles, MacMillan Hall y el edifico del Teatro.
A todos los estudiantes se les pedirá que usen su etiqueta con su nombre durante el Retiro de Estudiantes Latinos. Los estudiantes sin etiqueta no podrán participar en las actividades y serán remitidos a su acompañate. Esto es para la seguridad de todos lo estudiantes y asistentes. Además, los estudiantes recibirán una camiseta del evento. Los estudiantes deben usar la camiseta durante el evento.
Por favor hable con sus estudiantes con anticipación sobre la conducta adecuada. Tradicionalmente, los acompañantes y los voluntarios desempeña un papel importante a la hora de ayudar a controlar la multitud y ayudar a crear una atmósfera divertida y acogedora. Por este motivo, te pedimos que asistas a la presentación del evento y a los talleres con sus alumnos. También contaremos con estudiantes universitarios experimentados que ayudarán con los talleres y acompañarán a los estudiantes.
Cualquier pregunta debe remitirse a Juvenal Vasquez llando al 468-3115 o enviando un correo electrónico a jvasquez@mendocino.edu. ¡Gracias por todo su apoyo! Apreciamos enormemente su asociación y colaboración para hacer de este un evento exitoso para todos nuestros asistentes.
Desglose del día:
8:15 AM - 8:55 AM: Registro
9:00 AM - 10:00 AM: Bienvenida y discurso de apertura
10:10 AM - 11:10 AM: Taller 1
11:15 AM - 12:15 PM: Taller 2
12:15 PM - 1:30 PM: Almuerzo y Feria de Recursos
A special shout-out to our 2024 sponsors: Redwood Credit Union, Blue Zones Project, and Black Oaks Coffee Roasters. We look forward to the continuous collaboration to expand Mendocino College's Latinx students' pursuit of higher education. We are fortunate to have Redwood Credit Union sponsor us again in 2025.
Un agradecimiento especial a nuestros patrocinadores del 2024: Redwood Credit Union, Blue Zones Project y Black Oaks Coffee Roasters. Esperamos con interés la colaboración continua para ampliar la búsqueda de educación superior de los estudiantes latinos de Mendocino College. Tenemos la suerte de que Redwood Credit Union nos patrocine nuevamente en 2025.
Questions? Contact us!
¿Preguntas? ¡Contáctenos!
Juvenal Vazquez – jvasquez@mendocino.edu
Mariana Martinez – mmartinez@mendocino.edu
Roberto Renteria – rrenteria@mendocino.edu
Feel free to reach out to our Hispanic-Serving Institution (HIS) staff team. Our HSI staff work within our Student Success and Retention Center. The main office is in Ukiah, MacMillan Hall, room 1260.
Email: retentionhelp@mendocino.edu
Phone #: 707.468.3232
Staff
Resource listing coming soon!