Previous Events

Digital Delano Rural Archives Showcase Event

• May 1
• DST 118, Bakersfield College Delano Campus

This showcase event featured the Digital Delano Archive Project, housed within the Bakersfield College Delano Campus Library. The program featured historical displays dealing with local histories, a panel presentation with community experts on local history in Delano and surrounding communities, a keynote address by San Francisco State historian Professor Dawn Mabalon, and a presentation by project co-directors Elisabeth Sundby and Dr. Oliver Rosales.

Screening and Panel: "Dolores: Rebel. Activist. Feminist. Mother"

• March 12th
• Levan Center (livestreamed in DST 118)

The Women's History and More Committee organized this event, featuring Dolores Huerta and members of her family hosting a screening of the PBS Independent Lens documentary about her life at the Panorama Main Campus. Adjunct Librarian Allison Burch moderated a group watching the event at the Delano Campus, who were able to view the discussion via livestream and ask questions from DST 118.

Allensworth State Historical Park Visit

• February 10th
• Allensworth State Historic Park - Palmer Avenue, Earlimart, CA

The Delano Campus Cultural and Historical Awareness Program (CHAP) participated in a black history month event at Allensworth State Historical Park, the only state park in California dealing exclusively with the history of African Americans. Professor Oliver Rosales, Paula Parks and Michelle Hart, as well as librarian Elisabeth Sundby, led the group along with Ph.D. candidate Laura Hooten from UC Santa Barbara, an expert on rural African-American history in the area between the US and Mexico borders.

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Dr. Michael Eric Dyson

• February 8th
• Edward Simonsen Performing Arts Center (livestreamed to the Delano Campus)

Delano CHAP coordinated with the Office of Student Life and the Library's Cerro Visiting Author series to livestream Dr. Dyson's presentation about Martin Luther King, Jr. to the Delano Center.

 

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Digital Delano: Preserving an International Community's History

• October 25th
• Robert F. Kennedy High School Lecture Hall - 1401 Heitt Avenue, Delano, CA

This discussion - which was conducted in English and Spanish with the assistance of moderator Octavio Barajas, an adjunct history professor at BC - featured author Gabriel Thompson discussing his 2016 book about California Migrant workers, as well as Valerie Gorospe of the Center for Race, Poverty and the Environment and Delano Center Interim Director Abel Guzman. Librarian Elisabeth Sundby and volunteers also collected historical artifacts and recorded the stories of Delano residents to digitize in a community-based archive that will be available for future use by students and researchers.

This event was sponsored by the National Endowment for the Humanities.

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Poverty and Policy in Delano

• October 18th
• Kern County Library - Delano Branch

English professor Chris Dison moderated this panel, which featured the Delano Regional Medical Center's Joe Aguirre discussing the history of the hospital's Community Garden.

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A Life In Politics: Discussion Panel

• April 25th
• Robert F. Kennedy High School Lecture Hall - 1401 Heitt Avenue, Delano, CA

A political panel of field representatives for state and national leaders shared their insights into the workings of political office. Speakers also shared about what drives them to work hard every day behind the scenes as staff members in the public sector; where they are now and where they want to go; and most importantly, the issues that are important now and in the future.

Panelists

• Moderator: Charles Kim - BC Professor of Political Science
• Rogelio Caudillo - Field Representative for Andy Vidak, State Senator of California's 14th District
• Joseph Lopez - Field Representative for Rudy Salas, Assemblymember of California's 32nd District
• Ariana Joven - Field Representative for David Valadao, the Congressman of California's 21st District in the House of Representatives

Screening and Discussion: "Miss Representation"

• March 28th
• Robert F. Kennedy High School Lecture Hall - 1401 Heitt Avenue, Delano, CA

"Miss Representation", written and directed by Jennifer Siebel Newsom, examines the ways that media is able to create cultural norms and spread messages that disparage women and girls, undermining their ability and desire to lead and feel powerful. After the film, religion and philosophy professor Susane Langham moderated a discussion with members of the audience.

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Exploring the Nahuatl and Mesoamerican Cultural Legacy, Past and Present

• March 14th
• Robert F. Kennedy High School Lecture Hall - 1401 Heitt Avenue, Delano, CA

Ridgeview High School counselor Salvador Garcia gave an engaging talk about his 20-year career researching pre-Columbian art and symbolism in Mesoamerica. After intensely studying the Aztec calendar system and the Aztec's Nahuatl language, Salvador developed a deep knowledge and appreciation for the indigenous heritage of the Mexican people, as well as Mesoamerican history in general. At the end of Garcia's presentation, audience members asked about questions about the legacy of the Nahuatl people and their influence on Mexican culture, as well as parallels between Mesoamerican calendars and the Gregorian and Julian calendars of ancient Europe.

About the Speaker

As a child of migrant parents, Salvador Garcia has experienced two vastly different worlds: his life in Mexico, and his life in the USA. His exposure to both countries has allowed him to have a more balanced perspective on life, and he's learned how to make the best out of both worlds.

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Civic Engagement and Social Justice in the Central Valley:
Environmental Justice, Legal Advocacy, and Academic Research Perspectives

• November 21st
• BC Delano Campus - DST 109

This event featured two professional working within the fields of environmental justice and academia, doing critical work on the intersection of civic and engagement and social justice issues in rural California and the Central Valley. Panelists presented on their work and discussed issues and perspectives relevant to the lives of Central Valley residents. The panelists also answered question after their presentation.

Sponsors for this event included BC's Office of Student Life, the BC Student Government Association's CCA Grant and the Kern Value Card Discount Sticker; BC's Social Justice Institute; Cornell University; and the Central California Environmental Justice Network.

Panelists

• Gustavo Aguirre, Jr. - Project Coordinator, Central California Environmental Justice Network
• Rodrigo Alatriste-Diaz - Doctoral Candidate in Developmental Sociology, Cornell University

Voter Education, Civic Responsibility and the November 2016 Election

• October 17th
• BC Delano Campus - DST 109

A student-led information session was held before the November 2016 elections in order to increase voter participation and civic engagement. the event informed participants about the importance of civic engagement and the issues on the 2016 ballot that would impact our communities. Our guest speaker Moises Duran, Equality Organizer of the Dolores Huerta Foundation, also answered questions from the audience after the discussion.

This event was sponsored by BC's Office of Student Life, the BC Student Government Association's CCA Grant, and the Dolores Huerta Foundation.

Coming Home: Finding My Filipino-American Roots

• October 4th
• Robert F. Kennedy High School Lecture Hall - 1401 Heitt Avenue, Delano, CA

In 1994, while attending a reading by Filipino-American poets in the Bay Area, Patty Enrado first heard about Agbayani Village in Delano, the retirement home built in 1974 by the United Farm Workers. Thus began her journey of learning about the Filipino-American contributions to California's farm worker movement - a buried piece of history few people have heard of. In her research, Patty also delves into her family and community history, and in writing her debut novel, A Village in the Fields, she brings to light and honors the immigrant stories of her relatives and her Filipino-American community.

This event was funded by the BC Student Government Association's CCA Grant.

About the Speaker

Patty was born in Los Angeles and raised in Terra Bella, Calif. She has an AA from Porterville College, a BA in English from the University of California at Davis, and an MA from Syracuse University's Creative Writing Program. She writes about health information technology for a healthcare industry media firm and lives in the San Francisco Bay Area with her husband and two children.

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A History of Allensworth in Local, Regional and International Context

• March 31st
• Robert F. Kennedy High School Lecture Hall - 1401 Heitt Avenue, Delano, CA

A panel discussion was held with Steve Ptomey, Park Interpreter III, Park Manager, Allensworth State Historic Park, Michael Eissinger, Ph.D. Candidate, World Cultures and History, University of California, Merced, and Laura Hooton, Ph.D. Candidate, History, University of California, Santa Barbara in which they discussed African American Migrations in the American Far West & U.S.-Mexico Borderlands: A History of Allensworth in Local, Regional, and International Context. The event was well attended by students, staff, and community members. Discussion began with the history of Allensworth SHP, followed by the history of African American communities throughout the Central Valley, and ending with information about the communities that were created in Southern California and into Mexico.

We were especially excited to feature this panel in Delano, California, home of the farm worker movement, on a day recognizing the historical legacy of Cesar Chavez. The farm worker movement historically was a diverse racial and ethnic movement, involving Mexican Americans, Filipino Americans, Arab Americans, and African Americans as well. This panel session contributed toward broadening our understanding of California's diverse agricultural history with respect to the history of African Americans.

This event was organized by Michelle Hart, Assistant Professor of Academic Development and co-chair of CHAP and was sponsored by the Bakersfield College Cultural and Historical Awareness Program (CHAP), Delano Campus Foundation, Office of Student Life, Social Justice Institute of Bakersfield College, and Friends of Allensworth Committee.

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Equity, Social Justice, and Civic Duty in Delano

• April 13th, 2016
• Robert F. Kennedy High School Lecture Hall - 1401 Heitt Avenue, Delano, CA

This discussion about the importance of community involvement and education was organized by Anhelica Perez, the Delano Campus Programmer for BC's Office of Student Life, and moderated by Delano Campus students Fernanda Martinez and Alexa Rivera. This panel discussion included Alfred Hernandez, California Rural Legal Assistance, Valerie Gorospe, Center for Race, Poverty, and the Environment, Lorena Lara, Faith in Action, Stephen W. Schilling, Clinica Sierra Vista, and Catherine Wagner, American Civil Liberties Union of Southern California. This event was sponsored by BC Delano CHAP, Bakersfield College Office of Student Life, and the Social Justice Institute of Bakersfield College.

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Film Screening and Panel: "Latino Americans: Peril and Promise (1980-2000)

• April 27th
• Robert F. Kennedy High School Lecture Hall - 1401 Heitt Avenue, Delano, CA

BC history professor Dr. Oliver Rosales organized a special screening of the PBS film "Latino Americans: Peril and Promise (1980-2000)", followed by a panel discussion. The event was sponsored by the American library Association, the National Endowment for the Humanities, BC Social Justice Institute and BC Delano Center CHAP.

Panliests

• Gonzalo Santos, Associate Professor of Sociology
• Stephen Allen, Assistant Professor of History
• Marisa Sanchez, Assistant Professor of Sociology

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Promoting Change: The Importance of Community Involvement

• November 19th
• Robert F. Kennedy High School Lecture Hall - 1401 Heitt Avenue, Delano, CA

Community leaders Liz Morris, Janet Rabanal, Larissa Portillo, and Ricardo Chavez participated in a panel on how to promote change in Delano.

The Tuskeegee of the West: Education and the History of Allensworth State Historic Park

• October 26th
• Robert F. Kennedy High School Lecture Hall - 1401 Heitt Avenue, Delano, CA

George Finley spoke about the history of Allensworth State Historic park, including his own experiences as a teacher in Allensworth, and the importance of education. George Finley was born in Alabama where he attended elementary and high school. He graduated from Tuskeegee University with a B.S. degree and then was drafted in the United States Army and served in the Korean War. After being discharged from the Army, Mr. Finley settled in Fresno and was employed by North American Aviation before obtaining a position with Allensworth School District in Tulare County. He worked at the Allensworth school for ten years before moving to the Fresno Unified School District to work as an elementary school teacher. After a year and a half in the classroom, he moved to the newly established office of Human Relations where he was instrumental in setting up the first Human Relations Program for Fresno Unified School District. After two years with the Human Relations Department, Mr. Finley moved to the Department of Student Services as a Truant Officer where he remained until his retirement in June, 1991.

It's Written in the Stars: Calculations and Confrontations along the Nineteenth Century US-Mexico Border

• October 13th
• Robert F. Kennedy High School Lecture Hall - 1401 Heitt Avenue, Delano, CA

Celeste Menchaca, a Ph.D. Candidate at USC's Department of American Studies and Ethnicity, gave a talk broadly discussing the US-Mexico border and its production in the 19th and early 20th centuries.

Since the passage of the Secure Fence Act of 2006, the United States has fortified the U.S.-Mexico border with additional fencing, lighting, military gadgets, unmanned aerial vehicles, and state-of-the-art surveillance cameras. The technologies of sight that inform the material and imagined production of the current U.S.-Mexico boundary line, however, have an extensive history, one that begins well before the 21st century and even before the creation of the Border Patrol in 1924. Menchaca explored the emerging relationship between science, technology, vision, and border production during the second half of the 19th Century.

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Film Screening and Presentation: "The Delano Manongs"

• April 20th, 2015
• Robert F. Kennedy High School Lecture Hall - 1401 Heitt Avenue, Delano, CA

A screening of the historical documentary "The Delano Manongs" aired with director Marissa Aroy, followed by two presentations - UC Davis professor Robyn Rodriquez talked about Filipino Americans who participated in the Great Grape Strike of 1965, and San Francisco State University professor Dawn Mabalon talked about her upcoming biography of . The event was sponsored by the BC Delano Center and the Library's Cerro Visiting Author program.

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A Refuge For His Race: Allensworth, Preservation, and Historical Memory

• April 13th

Carnell Montgomery, a Bakersfield native and member of the Bakersfield Educational Chapter of the Friends of Allensworth organization, gave a talk about the history of Allensworth.

Your Place in Words: The Individual's New Responsibility in the Southern Central Valley Through History and Writing

• April 9th

Nick Belardes, a local author and historian, gave a talk about his career in writing and research.

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Dr. Kimberly Hoang

• September 11th

Dr. Kimberly Hoang, a Bakersfield native and Assistant Professor of Sociology and International Studies at Boston College, gave a talk on her book "Dealing in Desire: Asian Ascendency, Western Decline, and the Hidden Currencies in Global Sex Work".

Steven Ptomey: A Town Founded On A Dream

• October 15th

Steven Ptomey, a State Park Interpreter III and Park manager at Allensworth State History Park, spoke about the history of Allensworth, from its founding in 1908 to it rediscovery in the 1970s.

Josephine Triplett

• November 6th

Retired Bakersfield College faculty member Josephine Triplett spoke about her mother Gemelia Hall Herring and her grandparents William Henry "Bud" and Elizabeth Williams Hall, the earliest settlers of the Allensworth colony.

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