CLEMSON UNIVERSITY’S MEN OF COLOR NATIONAL SUMMIT
closing the opportunity gap for latino and african american high school young men
By Amanda Long
No one knows how important it is getting to and graduating from college than Julio Hernandez. As a first- generation high school and college graduate and current Ph.D. candidate whose parents were not able to go to school past fifth grade, Hernandez sets the example for young men of color of why and how graduating from college can change the trajectory of one’s life. However, as he also knows, the path to get there isn’t easy and navigating it can be daunting.
Julio Hernandez, who today is assistant vice president for inclusive excellence and executive director for Hispanic outreach at Clemson University, also serves as the co-chair of the University’s Men of Color National Summit. Five years ago, the summit was created to help close the opportunity gap and to illuminate clearer pathways to higher education for Latino and African American high school young men. Young high school men like Hernandez once was, who have aspirations to go to college, dreams of careers to pursue and impact to make.
In 2021, Clemson celebrates the historically sold-out summit’s fifth year, where more than 2,100 students, educators and administrators, business and community leaders come together from across the country to listen, learn, network and then leave inspired to apply it all to impact change in their communities. Keynote and breakout speakers will focus on career and professional development; entrepreneurship; masculinity and personal identity; retention rates, graduation and student achievement; and social and community engagement.
Due to Clemson’s commitment towards inclusive excellence, the University’s Hispanic/Latinx student body on campus increased from 3% to 6% in just in three years, better reflecting the demographics of South Carolina where Clemson is located. Hispanic applica-
tions have steadily increased. In 2019, they made up 6.7% of all applications. In 2020, that number increased to 7.2%, and in 2021 to 8.7%.
The long-term results of developing a college educated workforce rich with Latino and African American young men means organizations have a more diverse pool of potential talent to choose from to build high-performing teams. The Boeing Company and Ally Financial recognized the value and opportunity that initiatives like Clemson’s Men of Color National Summit can bring to the future workforce. Both organizations have invested in the summit as its presenting sponsors. Many other notable organizations - on a local, statewide, and national level, have also invested in the initiative.
To cultivate a college-going culture amongst first-generation high school students and provide mentoring relationships to help students navigate the path to applying for colleges, Clemson formed the Tiger Alliance. This college access program is comprised of a cohort of approximately 400 high school Latino and African-American young men from Upstate, SC high schools who benefit from access to information about college fairs and expos, a mentoring relationship with a current college student, college-prep workshops, college tours and attendance at the Men of Color National Summit hosted by Clemson University.
Through The Boeing Company’s investment across the University’s diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives, the Boeing STEM Tiger Alliance Scholarship was established. The first recipient was Alejandro Jaramillo, who graduated in May 2021 from Legacy Early College in Greenville, SC and is a Tiger Alliance participant. He was awarded a full scholarship to attend Clemson University, where he will be a College of Engineering, Computing and Applied Sciences student this fall with the hope of securing a career in aeronautical engineering working for NASA or SpaceX.
Included in this year’s keynote speaker line up are José Hernández, NASA engineer and former Space Shuttle mission STS-128 astronaut, and Victor Sáenz, Ph.D, department chair and professor, Department of Educational Leadership and Policy, University of Texas, Austin and founder of Project MALES.
Clemson’s Julio Hernandez sees the impact the summit makes on attendees each year and reflects, “I would not be where I am today if so many people hadn’t mentored and helped me in the process. I was the first one in my family to go to college and I know what it has done for my life. I have a duty to help others.”
JOIN CLEMSON UNIVERSITY IN HELPING YOUNG MEN OF COLOR BY:
• Registering to attend the summit at Clemson. edu/menofcolor
• Becoming a sponsor of the 2022 summit
CLEMSON UNIVERSITY MEN OF COLOR NATIONAL SUMMIT DATES:
• April 21-22, 2022, Greenville Convention Center, Greenville, SC
CONTACT
menofcolorsummit@clemson.edu to learn more.
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