SPC Chavez March Experience-Year 5 Edition

St. Philip’s College students and faculty promote college completion as fifth-year participants in the 2019 City of San Antonio César Chávez March for Justice this month. The 2019 event is March 30 at 10 a.m. at the Guadalupe Theater at 1301 Guadalupe St., and all are welcome to join the college in the march that is an emerging traditional element of the St. Philip’s College experience.

The college will take time during the march this year to thank the community for serving as partners in such projects as helping St. Philip’s College bring a 2018 Governor’s Award for Performance Excellence to San Antonio, helping to return a combined $24 million to the bank accounts of San Antonio students, residents and small business owners from 2016-2018 as part of its free federal income tax preparation service, upgrading San Antonio’s $4 billion tourism community through the 2018 construction underway of a $30 million Tourism, Hospitality and Culinary Arts Center of Excellence, and employing the recent record numbers of graduates from the college that is a 2018-2019 nationally rated leader in graduating students of color. This is all in support of aspirations of the march listed on one of the march web pages: to encourage youth of our community to engage in civic participation; advocate for social and economic justice; and graduate from college. Keep an eye out for further details that will be announced and updated online in coming weeks, organizers shared this week.

The observance is of interest to all serving, giving back and celebrating education with St. Philip's College as a destination in 2019. The Chavez march route begins at the intersection of Guadalupe St. and South Brazos St. Marchers travel east to Santa Rosa St., head north on Santa Rosa St. to Cesar E. Chavez Blvd. and turn east on Cesar Chavez Blvd. to Flores St. Then the marchers travel north to Commerce St., down Commerce St. to Alamo St. and continuing until the march ends at The Alamo.

Led by members of the college’s Future United Latino Leaders for Change student organization, 20 SPC students and faculty members usually participate in the march honoring the ideals of the revered civil rights leader and co-organized by members of the César Chávez Legacy and Educational Foundation and the YES WE CAN Campaign.

St. Philip’s College student body interest in Chávez increased when college Student Government Association leaders made college history by organizing the college's first formal participation of 20 students in the city’s 2014 march and 40 students in the 2015 march. College students and employees marched along the route from the intersection of Guadalupe St. and Brazos St. to the Alamo. The 2018 event theme was Building Bridges for Education, Non-Violence, and Social Justice and the 2019 theme is Voices and Votes for Education, Social Justice and Equality.

The student-led initiative aspires to raise awareness for basic American ideals and college completion, a strategic goal of both organizers and St. Philip’s College, and images of St. Philip's College students in previous marches can be found at the official web page for the march co-sponsored by the city and the Cesar E. Chavez Legacy and Educational Foundation at http://www.ceclef.org/.

For full details on the college’s observance to include partnering in or scaling up college participation, service and excellence, contact college march program co-chairs John Martin (director of student conduct and Title IX programs) at jmartin139@alamo.edu and Ruben Guerrero (senior multimedia specialist) at rguerrero@alamo.edu. Visit the Cesar E. Chavez Legacy and Educational Foundation web page at https://ceclef.org/what-we-do/march-for-justice/, and find previous college marchers at image 3 of 8 on the event web page.

CAPTION: Archival images of St. Philip's College students giving back as participants at City of San Antonio César Chávez March for Justice programs are a reminder that the next march date is March 30. (SPC images)