04-04-95 Ethnic Youth Gangs Topic of Lecture

AUTHOR TO SPEAK AT OHIO STATE ON MEXICAN-AMERICAN EDUCATION

     COLUMBUS -- A California expert on ethnic youth gangs will
lecture on "Ethnic Identity, Cultural Change, and Academic
Achievement Among Mexican American Youths" April 21 at The Ohio
State University.

     James Diego Vigil, professor of anthropology and research
fellow at the Center for Multiethnic and Transnational Studies at
the University of Southern California, will speak at 1 p.m. in
the Conference Theater of the Ohio Union, 1739 N. High St.

     The lecture is based on Vigil's book, The Changing Chicano
High School Scene, to be published next year.  Vigil considers
that, in addition to social factors like culture and language,
things like socio-economic status, aspirations, and antisocial
attitudes also contribute to the educational performance of
Mexican-American youths in the United States.   He will discuss
how public policy can play a role in academic achievement among
Mexican-American youths.

     Vigil is the third speaker in the 1994-95 Minority Scholars
and Policymakers Lecture Series, sponsored by Ohio State's School
of Public Policy and Management.

     The lecture is free and open to the public  Parking is
available in the Ohio Union Parking Garage.

     Vigil, an urban anthropologist and researcher, has studied
young people in Mexico, Guatemala and, more recently, Los
Angeles.  Interested in youth gangs and the role of street
socialization, he is author of Barrio Gangs, as well as several
articles on other ethnic gangs.  He is also completing a
manuscript, A Rainbow of Gangs, which examines street youth cross
culturally.

     Vigil has doctorate in anthropology from UCLA, master's
degrees in history and anthropology from Sacramento State and
UCLA and a bachelor's degree in history from Long Beach State
University.  He is the former chair of Chicano Studies at the
University of Wisconsin-Madison.

                                #

Contact: C. Ronald Huff, director of the School of Public Policy
and Management, 292-8696.

NOTE TO NEWS MEDIA:  Vigil will be available to talk with
reporters immediately following his lecture (approximately 3
p.m.) in the Conference Theater.  Reporters may make alternate
arrangements by calling C. Ronald Huff, director, School of
Public Policy and Management, at (614) 292-8696.


[Submitted by: Von Reid-Vargas (ereid@magnus.acs.ohio-state.edu)
               
Tue, 4 Apr 1995 09:33:47 -0400]
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