LREA celebrates Day of the Dead with breakfast and scholarship event

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Hispanic culture and education collide on Nov. 1 as Delta’s La Raza Employees Association (LREA) hosts a Día de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) Scholarship Breakfast.

From 7:30 to noon, in the Danner Hall’s Mustang Room, students, staff and faculty members will enjoy Latin cuisine such as pan dulce, pozole, tamales and hot chocolate or coffee with the purchase of a $10 ticket.

All proceeds from ticket sales will benefit the La Raza Employees Association Scholarship.

“The scholarship is for delta students. Both graduating seniors and continuing students,” said Ariana Gonzalez, Outreach & Community Relations and LREA member.

“Our mission is to support Latino students and continuing their education. But when you’re looking at the success rates of students here at Delta College [and] in general across the state, Latinos are less likely to graduate. So it’s is one way to help.”

Having the event held on the Day of the Dead, Gonzalez hopes to stimulate students with Hispanic backgrounds.

“Some traditions are lost. Like Día de los Muertos, people don’t know what that means and so our scholarship breakfast is a way not only to raise awareness, but to bring people together,” said Gonzalez.

The association will also commemorate professors and students who have passed away.

Art donated by local artists will also be auctioned off with profits going directly to the scholarship fund.

LREA faculty members are required to donate at least $50 a year towards the scholarship.

“They do it because it’s important for students to continue their education, to buy books [and] pay for tuition. Whatever it is that they need that money for to be a successful student,” said Gonzalez.

The scholarship is aimed specifically at full-time Latino students with at least a 2.5 grade-point average.