Issue link: http://digital.copcomm.com/i/120877
> EQUITY CTA members lead ���ght for equity and human rights The 2013 CTA Human Rights Award recipients. Front row: Jenny Chomori, CTA Secretary-Treasurer Mikki Cichocki-Semo, Vice President Eric Heins, President Dean Vogel, Katherine Jordan, Rebecca Harper (representing San Gorgonio Service Center Council). Second row: Christal Watts (representing Vallejo Education Association), Gary Leveque, Jorge Salas, Cliff Kusaba, Caroline Kris, Vanessa Perez, April Carmelo, Pat Sabo. Go the extra mile. It���s never crowded. Inspiring. Honorable. Dedicated. That���s how CTA President Dean E Vogel described CTA���s 2013 Human Rights Award recipients. They were honored by some 400 colleagues during last month���s Equity and Human Rights Conference for their efforts in ���ghting discrimination and championing respect for individual differences. Conference attendees also heard from national and state experts on issues ranging from countering campus bullying and developing cultural competency skills to exploring the effects of unconscious bias in social relationships. Read more about the honorees at www.cta.org/2013hrawardswinners. STORY AND PHOTO BY LEN FELDMAN 40 California Educator April 2013 Here are the CTA members who went the extra mile��� Jorge Salas, Travis Uni���ed Teachers Association ��� C��sar Ch��vez ���S�� Se Puede��� Award Salas developed his school���s successful Latinos Unidos Club for Education (LUCE) and uses local role models, university tours and peer tutoring to foster academic excellence. Graduates return to mentor the 40 students taking part in the club. April Carmelo, Shasta Secondary Education Association ��� Jim Clark American Indian/Alaska Native Award Carmelo, a member of the Greenville Rancheria Maidu tribe, and her son were threatened with a shotgun in August 2012 by white supremacists in Shasta Lake. When no charges were ���led, she made presentations at city council meetings against hate crimes and racism. She is working to establish a human rights commission. Vallejo Education Association (VEA) ��� CTA Chapter Human Rights Award VEA members donate and distribute school supplies for more than 2,000 students as part of their ���Helping Hands��� project, for which they���ve spent about $10,000 of their dues each of the last four years. VEA President Christal Watts and colleagues work with the public library to provide books for local families.