STATE UNIVERSITY, NORTHRIDGE

Por el Barrio: El primer Mexicoamericano en la Junta de Educación de Los Ángeles (For the Neighborhood: The First Mexican-American in the School Board of Education)

A graduate project submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements

For the degree of Master of Arts

In History

By

Pedro Enrique Puentes

May 2021

Copyright by Pedro Enrique Puentes 2021

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The graduate project of Pedro Enrique Puentes is approved:

______Dr. Thomas Devine Date

______Dr. John Paul Nuño Date

______Dr. Clementine Oliver Date

California State University, Northridge

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Table of Contents

Copyright ...... ii

Signature Page ...... iii

Abstract ...... v

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Abstract

Por el Barrio: El primer Mexicoamericano en la Junta de Educación de Los Ángeles (For the Neighborhood: The First Mexican-American in the Los Angeles School Board of Education)

By

Pedro Enrique Puentes Master of Arts in History

In accordance with university regulations, the following is an abstract of my culminating experience project, which serves as the final requirement towards the completion of a Masters of Arts Degree in History. While the following abstract summarizes my project’s scholarly contribution, research questions, methods, and conclusions, the final project is archived in the Department of History at California State

University, Northridge.

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This essay examines the efforts by the first Mexican American to serve on the Los

Angeles School Board of Education, Dr. Julian Nava, to implement a bilingual education program within the Los Angeles Unified School District. Nava and other bilingual advocates fought to advocate for Mexican American students who were unable to comprehend the English language curriculum, struggled academically, and dropped out of school in increasing numbers. Nava and other proponents of bilingualism were opposed by those who believed that the children of Mexican immigrants should become more “American” and move away from their cultural heritage and language. Many in the city of Los Angeles continued to be hostile to the notion of Mexican American youth accessing educational opportunities through public schools alongside Anglo students.

Such sentiments had a long history in the city. During the 1940s many schools had relocated Mexican American students into other classrooms and buildings away from their fellow Anglo students, resulting in an increasing number of what became known as

“Mexican Schools.” In 1947, the Federal Court of Appeals for the Ninth

Circuit ruled in Mendez v Westminster that segregating Mexican American children was unconstitutional and encouraged schools in California to integrate these students into the mainstream population. Julian Nava’s role on the school board offers deeper insight into the 1960s Chicano movement and the challenges LAUSD faced during a period of significant change. Nava’s presence on the Los Angeles School Board of Education sparked social and political awareness within the Mexican American community, which then fought to establish a bilingual program in public schools.

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