ECS Student, Javier H. Hernandez, Pens Op-Ed

Affirmative Action Addresses Inequities

Dr. Leticia Alvarez Gutiérrez teaches students how to apply theoretical concepts in her ECS 6820/7820: Juvenile (IN)Justice and Education course. As part of the course, Alvarez Gutiérrez requires assignments that "link theory with praxis and contextualize what young people are experiencing in schools/communities today in relation" to a variety of social justice issues. Such activities include writing op-eds, as two of her students, Hannah Blomgren and Javier H. Hernandez, recently did.

Hernandez, a first-year master of education student in the Department of Education, Culture & Society, applied what he learned in Alvarez Gutiérrez's class and penned an op-ed in the Salt Lake Tribune: Affirmative Action is the Way to Deal with America's Inequality Problem , where he details how affirmative action addresses the long, dark shadow of segregation—the effects of which are still felt today.

Hernandez notes that “Some say it is not a function of government to make all things equal,” but that “the same society has effectively made things unequal for a great many people, namely African Americans, Native Americans, and a great number of so-aggrieved communities,” which means we have an obligation as a society—and as a government—to address inequities.

Hernandez was able to apply his classroom learning to a real-world issue, addressing readers of the Salt Lake Tribune with a well-thought-out and well-supported argument. It makes the entire college proud to see our students engaging their communities so early in their educational journey!

Javier H. Hernandez