News (Noticias) Tagged ‘children’

Dipped, topped or eaten plain, America loves snacks. But new research from Mintel shows that not all Americans snack the same. Hispanics, the fastest growing population in the US, differ significantly in their snacking habits.

Mintel’s exclusive consumer survey reveals that Hispanic adults are twice as likely as non-Hispanics to reward their children’s good behavior with salty snacks (41% versus 19%).

But salty snack consumption among Hispanic adults is low, possibly due to traditional food preferences. Of five snacks—potato chips, pretzels, popcorn, nuts and corn/tortilla chips/cheese snacks—only 65% of Hispanics report eating three or more regularly (versus 80% of the general population).

Other key Mintel findings:

* Hispanics emphasize mealtime, with snacks often perceived as appetite-spoilers. Mintel found Hispanics more interested in packages with “small portions” than the general population
* Frozen snack usage is extremely low among less acculturated Hispanics, but more acculturated Hispanics eat them at the same rate as other Americans
* Hispanic children show higher preference for healthy snacks like yogurt, cheese, raw veggies and nuts than non-Hispanic children

“Manufacturers need to understand that Hispanic’s eating habits are not the same as the general population’s,” explains Leylha Ahuile, multicultural expert at Mintel. “Even among Hispanics, we see huge variety in snacking, eating and drinking tendencies.”

Ahuile emphasizes the importance of not viewing Hispanics as one homogenous group. “Understanding acculturation and how Hispanics differ from one another is key for companies hoping to tap into this rapidly growing market.”

Mintel Launches Multicultural Oxygen Reports

Mintel’s new Multicultural America series helps marketers understand how Hispanic, Black and Asian Americans shop, eat, act, believe and live. The reports cover behaviors, attitudes and lifestyles specific to these demographics, lending insight and analysis to trends and future opportunities. For more information, visit oxygen.mintel.com.

About Mintel

Mintel is a leading global supplier of consumer, product and media intelligence. For more than 35 years, Mintel has provided insight into key worldwide trends, offering unique data that directly impacts client success. With offices in Chicago, London, Belfast, Sydney, Shanghai and Tokyo, Mintel has forged a unique reputation as a world-renowned business brand. For more information on Mintel, please visit www.mintel.com. “

With literacy levels in the Unites States hovering at around 75 percent — an embarrassing rate for one of the world’s most powerful economies — and literacy a key issue in many Hispanic communities, Latin Baby has launched a new blog for Latino parents as part of its new Book Club.

The book club was created to help parents find bilingual books and selections that describe Hispanic culture and traditions. Most of the books are either bilingual or help parents maintain a connection to traditional children’s games, Latin American folk songs and nursery rhymes that are being forgotten as younger generations of Hispanics assimilate ever faster into the U.S. mainstream.

“I’m all for progress, but many of our cultural traditions are being lost with the passing of our abuelitos and the creeping influence of electronic games and toys that don’t really teach our children how to truly think and develop their imaginations,” said Monica Olivera Hazelton, founder and president of Latin Baby. “Latinos have a rich cultural heritage that is evolving as it merges with the best of U.S. creativity and innovation. I believe our grandparents’ wisdom and time-honored customs are an essential part of our U.S. identity and can take us to new levels of achievement.”

Both the book club and blog are designed to encourage parents to read to their children. Reading has become increasingly crucial as major studies emerge showing that unless a child can read by third grade, it is unlikely that child will succeed in school.

Through the book club, Ms. Olivera also sees much benefit in supporting Latino authors and songwriters who are writing and maintaining Latino traditions for future generations. “Like all great art with universal themes, the works of Latino artists help us see the present through the prism of history. These artists are the whispers of our past. They give voice to la sangre hispana — Hispanic blood — that is coursing through our veins, and not only help us understand ourselves, but help others to understand us, as well.”

The blog (latinbabybookclub.blogspot.com) will feature reviews of bilingual songs and literature for children, ages infant to young adult; book suggestions for parents; interviews with emerging and established authors; and special events held at local libraries and book stores. Of particular interest will be the LBBC’s Libro del Mes/Book of the Month, which will highlight must-have books for Latino or bilingual family libraries.

Besides Ms. Olivera, other stellar bloggers will submit reviews to the blog, including:

* Aurora Anaya-Cerda, owner of La Casa Azul Bookstore, (www.lacasaazulbookstore.com) an independent bookstore offering new and used books and music. She is an active member of the East Harlem community as a participant and supporter of cultural and educational events. She was awarded the Juanita Centeno Leadership Award and the UCLA Women for Change Leadership Award, both for outstanding dedication and service to her community.

* Violeta Garcia-Mendoza, born in Madrid, Spain, is a writer, poet, and blogger from Multi-Culti Mámi. The Pennsylvania resident is Co-Editor and Columnist for Literary Mama and a book reviewer for RainbowKids Magazine. Her poetry and prose have appeared in a variety of publications. She conducts writing workshops on-line in creative nonfiction and poetry through her website (www.TurnPeoplePurple.com).

* Carrie Ferguson Weir has four gigs going at once — she co-owns Los Pollitos Dicen, a boutique line of Spanish baby T-shirts, does public relations for small businesses, writes freelance, and posts for her own blog, Bilingual in the Boonies. Weir’s love of all things Spanish, Latino and bilingual comes from her Miami-bred, Cuban-American heritage, which she honors by regularly dousing her house with pine-scented cleanser and making a memorable flan.

* Christianne Meneses Jacobs is the Nicaragua-born publisher/editor of Iguana Magazine. In 2007, she was honored as one of the recipients of the “Anna Maria Arias Memorial Business Fund” for her entrepreneurial spirit and service to the Latino community through Iguana, the only Spanish-language children’s magazine in the U.S.

For more information, contact Ms. Olivera at 252-826-9956 or go to the web site, latinbabybookclub.blogspot.com. “

Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg and Schools Chancellor Joel I. Klein today announced that New York City’s four-year high school graduation rate continues to push upward, as it has every year under the Administration. The City’s four-year rate reached a new high of 55.8 percent in 2007, according to data released this morning by the New York State Education Department, with more students earning Regents diplomas and black and Hispanic students narrowing the graduation gap with their white and Asian peers. The State’s rates now include students who met graduation requirements in summer school following their senior year. Excluding these students to allow for comparisons with previous years, the City’s graduation rate has risen 5.7 percentage points since 2005, and 2.4 points since 2006. By comparison, graduation rates Statewide have risen by 2.8 points since 2005 and 1.4 points since 2006. The City’s increases translate into more than 5,000 additional students graduating since 2005. In addition, the City’s dropout rate has declined since 2005 by 3.3 points, to 14.7 percent from 18 percent. The Mayor and Chancellor were joined at Department of Education headquarters in the Tweed Courthouse by Deputy Mayor for Education and Community Development Dennis M. Walcott, United Federation of Teachers ( UFT ) President Randi Weingarten, UFT Chief Operating Office Michael Mulgrew, and Council of School Supervisors and Administrators ( CSA ) Executive Vice President Peter McNally.

“The graduation rate is a crucial indicator of whether our school system is fulfilling its core mission - giving our children the skills they need to become successful adults,” said Mayor Bloomberg. “After a decade of near-stagnation, New York City’s graduation rate has climbed significantly since 2002. We clearly need to help larger numbers of students to graduate, but the progress we’ve made so far means that thousands more students are graduating today than would have six years ago.”

“Today’s numbers confirm once again that steady progress is now the rule, not the exception, in New York City’s public schools,” said Chancellor Klein. “Although I’m pleased that the overall graduation rate is continuing to rise, it’s especially encouraging to see that the biggest increases are among our black and Hispanic students. This is further evidence that we’re beginning to close the shameful racial achievement gap in this City.”

Because this is the first year that the State included in its calculation students who graduated in August after their final semester, comparisons to previous years must exclude August graduates. Excluding those students, the City’s four-year graduation rate rose to 52.2 percent in 2007 from 49.8 percent in 2006 and 46.5 percent in 2005. At the same time, the dropout rate fell to 14.7 percent in 2007, down from 15 percent in 2006 and 18 percent in 2005. The five-year graduation rate rose to 59.5 percent in 2007 from 55.7 percent in 2006.

“Today is a day to congratulate teachers, principals, students and parents for all their hard work in keeping the graduation rate going in the right direction,” said UFT President Randi Weingarten. “Tomorrow we must ask ourselves what more can we do to get our kids ready for college, to enter the workforce, to improve their life skills? That’s going to require continued collaboration by everyone with a stake in our kids’ education, and in so doing we will dramatically increase the graduation rates.”

“We are seeing gradual, steady increases in student graduation rates because school leaders, teachers and parents are truly working together to improve student learning and ensure every child receives a quality education,” said CSA Executive Vice President Peter McNally. “Student achievement has always been a priority for school leaders, and while there is still more work to be done, with the proper resources we will continue to make progress.”

The percentage of graduates earning Regents diplomas has increased along with the overall graduation rate. A new high of 69.8 percent of graduates in 2007 earned a Regents diploma, compared to 68.4 percent in 2006 and 64.3 percent in 2005 - a 5.5 percentage point increase over two years. Students must meet more rigorous graduation requirements, including higher scores on their Regents exams, to earn a Regents diploma.

The four-year graduation rate among black and Hispanic students is increasing faster than that of their white and Asian peers. Overall, 47.2 percent of black students in 2007 graduated in four years, compared to 43.5 percent in 2006 and 40.2 percent in 2005. This 7.0 point increase over two years compares to a 4.7 increase among white students and a 4.5 increase among Asian students during the same period. Overall, 43 percent of Hispanic students in 2007 graduated in four years, compared to 41 percent in 2006 and 37.4 percent in 2005, an increase of 5.6 points. Between 2005 and 2007, the gap in the graduation rate between white and black students was reduced by 2.3 percentage points, and the gap between white and Hispanic students was reduced by 0.9 points.

The graduation rate among English Language Learners rose 3.1 points to 23.5 in 2007, after falling from 26.5 percent in 2005 to 20.4 percent in 2006. The graduation rate among special education students rose to 19.8 percent in 2007 from 19.4 percent in 2006 and 17.2 percent in 2005, a two-year increase of 2.6 percentage points.

Beginning this year, the City and the State are using a shared methodology to calculate graduation rates. Previously, the City used its own methodology to calculate the rate. Because this formula remained unchanged since 1986; it is still useful for comparisons over time. Using the City’s formula, the graduation rate rose from 58 percent to 62 percent between 2005 and 2007, an increase that tracks closely to the State’s calculation. Since the Mayor won control of the school system in 2002, the graduation rate has increased 11.2 points, using the City’s methodology, from 50.8 percent to 62 percent. Conversely, the graduation rate had been essentially stagnant over the decade prior to 2002.

MEDIA CONTACT:

Stu Loeser / Dawn Walker  ( 212 ) 788-2958

David Cantor  ( Department of Education )
( 212 ) 374-5141″

National furniture retailer Sofa Mart and Furniture Row Outlet, brands of Furniture Row Companies, will once again work together to aid the estimated two million street children in Mexico City.

The charity campaign titled, “Hope Is Always In Style,” allocates $20 for every sofa sold at the stores nationwide to World Vision for the duration of the campaign. The campaign was developed in 2000 and all of the proceeds have benefited World Vision’s “Ninos de la Calle” (street children) program. The program assists in the wide spread problem of homeless children in Mexico City.

Specifically designed to enable street children to become more self sufficient and move into a stable environment, the program focuses on providing educational support, shelter, children’s homes and family reintegration whenever possible.

World Vision Media Relations Director, Karen Kartes, elaborates on what the financial support means to the program: “Thanks to the generosity of Sofa Mart and its customers, thousands of orphaned and abandoned children and youth will continue to receive food, clothing, housing, vocational training, and health care through the World Vision Ninos de la Calle program in Mexico City.”

Marty Grosse, General Manager of Sofa Mart explains the motivation behind the campaign. “It is very important to our company to aid the global community. It is our intention that this effort will help foster hope and positive opportunities for the children of Mexico.”

The Furniture Row Companies make up one of the largest family owned specialty home furnishings and bedding retailer. The company is comprised of five specialty store brands including: Oak Express(R), Sofa Mart(R), Bedroom Expressions(R), Denver Mattress Company(R) and Furniture Row Outlet. Furniture Row operates more than 330 stores nationwide. For more information visit: www.FurnitureRow.com

About World Vision
World Vision is a Christian relief and development organization dedicated to helping children and their communities worldwide reach their full potential by tackling the causes of poverty. For more information please visit www.worldvision.org . “

Martin is one of about 155 young people who are attending this summer’s school for migrants at Rantoul Township High School.

Martin’s family moved to Rantoul a few weeks ago from Texas. His younger brother, Leo, and sister, Kate, attend the migrant school, but the rest of the family is working in northern Champaign County corn fields.”*

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Hispanic children who eat at the homes of friends or relatives are more likely to gain weight, according to a study by San Diego State University. The report, recently published in the research journal “Obesity,” is part of a larger study (The San Diego Grocery Store Project) to prevent excess weight gain in children by partnering with restaurants, schools and grocery stores.”*

Alexia’s death in a city so accustomed to death struck a nerve because she was, in this city tortured by killings, broad-daylight gun battles and rampant kidnappings, an innocent victim.

That description isn’t redundant in a country in the grip of a raging drug war: The vast majority of the thousands of dead are thought to have some connection to the cartels. They have been hired hit men, drug runners, corrupt police officers.”*

A summer pilot program in Columbia aims to introduce Hispanic preschoolers to the English language before they head to kindergarten.

The three-week !Listo! Summer School starts next Monday and will serve as many as 16 Spanish-speaking children who haven’t already been introduced to English at another preschool, said Phil Peters, director of First Chance for Children and one of the program’s organizers. “*

With federal authorities stepping up raids and local police joining enforcement efforts, illegal immigrants and their advocates say that preparing for possible deportation is becoming a common feature of life in their underground world.

They are designating who should take custody of their children, indicating what should be done with cars and homes, ensuring that relatives have power of attorney to access bank accounts and key documents, and memorizing phone numbers they might need to call from jail. Some are sending their U.S.-born children for visits to their home countries so they could adapt more easily if the family is suddenly forced to move back. “*

The National Council of La Raza (NCLR), the largest national Hispanic civil rights and advocacy organization in the U.S., will present the 2008 NCLR/Ford Motor Company Affiliate of the Year Award to the Committee for Hispanic Children and Families (CHCF)—an organization dedicated to improving the quality of life for Latino children and their families in the New York City community. CHCF, a member of NCLR’s network of nearly 300 Affiliates and a leader in youth services and public advocacy, will be honored at the 2008 NCLR Annual Conference Awards Gala on Tuesday, July 15 in San Diego, CA. In addition to the award, CHCF will receive a $25,000 cash award.

“CHCF’s dedication to promoting the advancement of Latino families has defined its affiliation with NCLR and is in line with NCLR’s mission of building a stronger America,” said Janet Murguía, NCLR President and CEO.

CHCF offers a number of direct health education programs and services that encompass a range of public health community education and outreach initiatives. While grounded in direct services, CHCF is active in the local, state, and national policy arena. CHCF provides free civic education and history classes to the community in English and Spanish, as well as assistance in completing the Naturalization Application.

“CHCF is honored to be recognized by NCLR for serving New York’s Hispanic community.” said Elba Montalvo, Executive Director of CHCF. “NCLR’s support will allow us to continue creating opportunities and opening doors for Latino families.” This year, Montalvo will complete her second and final term on the NCLR Board of Directors.

The Affiliate of the Year Award is presented annually and is an opportunity for NCLR to honor an Affiliate for exemplary work in positively impacting the local community and for supporting NCLR’s policy and programmatic initiatives. Generous support from the Ford Motor Company makes this recognition possible.

Four Affiliates were chosen as regional honorees for their outstanding work in specific geographical areas and each receive a cash award of $5,000. The regional honorees for 2008 are The Unity Council from Oakland, CA (California); Tejano Center for Community Concerns from Houston, TX (Central region); La Clínica del Pueblo from Washington, DC (Eastern region); and Youth Development, Inc. from Albuquerque, NM (Western region).

For more information about NCLR or the Affiliate awards, please contact Jacqueline Pacheco at jpacheco@nclr.org or (202) 785-1670, or visit www.nclr.org.”*

Last month, the Dallas Morning News published a series about illegal immigrant Hispanic students at a Dallas high school. The stories are largely about the students’ struggles to learn English, pass their classes and stay in school. Reporters Macarena Hernández and Gary Jacobson also provide an intimate and sympathetic view of the ups and downs students go through adjusting to new friends, parents they hadn’t seen in a long time, and in some cases siblings they’d never met.

The stories make a compelling read, but they glossed over the more important story: thousands of students in the state of Texas who are classified as limited English speakers were born in the U.S. The majority of them are Hispanic children and low-income.”*

Butterflies on Carmen Street / Mariposas en la calle Carmen (Piñata Books) by Monica Brown. Illustrated by April Ward.

The Woodcutter’s Gift / El regalo del leñador (Piñata Books) by Lupe Ruiz-Flores. Illustrated by Elaine Jerome.”*

Mexican officials say they don’t track the number of child deaths from drug-gang violence. But newspaper tallies find nearly 50 kids have been killed this year — and a code of ethics in which hit men took care to avoid harming children appears to be evaporating.”*

Police said that they have made two arrests in connection with the burning of a Puerto Rican flag at a home in Simpsonville.”*