The Advanced Language Program in Lexington– an effort that aids police officers in providing services to a growing Hispanic population — has been named one of 18 finalists for the prestigious Innovations in American Government Award.

The awards, often referred to as the “Oscars” of government, are given by the Ash Institute for Democratic Governance and Innovation at Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government in partnership with the Council for Excellence in Government. The Lexington program is eligible to win a $100,000 grand prize.

Lexington, like many other cities around the country, has experienced a significant increase in Spanish-speaking residents in recent years. The Advanced Language Program addresses the language barriers and the lack of cultural understanding of new residents for law enforcement officers.

The program involves two key components: language training and cultural immersion.

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Hispanic students are the largest minority student group at [Weber State University], according to spring 2005 institutional data results. Hispanics are also the largest minority in Utah, comprising 27 percent of Ogden’s population.

Hispanic students have the highest dropout rate in Utah schools.

Jim Martin, a member of the Utah Achievement Gap Coalition, said Utah has one of the largest achievement gaps in the nation. The UAGC was founded in October 2004 to address the achievement gap, the many inequalities that exist in education among underrepresented groups, specifically students of color.

The UAGC’s position statement stresses that achievement gaps are a national and state problem requiring immediate attention. A National Assessment for Education Progress test results showed, students of color scored at least one grade level below white students on all measures of achievement and in all disciplines.

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It may not be the height of cultural globalization, but it must be close – a Filipino trio of guitars and bass belting out 1960s Latin and pop tunes in perfect Spanish on a steamy tropical night in a communist Asian country on the hotel rooftop restaurant that was once the wartime haunt of U.S. officers, GIs and news correspondents.

Their names are Ludovico Mendoza, Raulico Pelaez and Constantino Cinco, and – after being spotted in a Manila hotel lounge by the general manager of the Saigon Prince Hotel – they have been plying their trade in Vietnam for the past 10 years.

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When it comes to golf, 1.3 billion Chinese can’t be wrong, can they?

Well, mostly yeah, apparently.

The European Tour has five events scheduled in China this year, an attempt to bring the world’s most populous nation into the golfing fold, whether the residents are ready or not.

Last week at the Johnnie Walker Classic in Beijing, overall attendance seemed fairly sparse, yet interruptions by camera-toting fans were plentiful and winner Adam Scott bravely fielded questions from the star-struck and confused media on issues that were downright comical.

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Some 45 years ago, Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev paid his first visit to the United States. It was a turbulent encounter for both Khrushchev and Americans. Khrushchev scoffed at American economic prosperity, deplored Hollywood’s tastelessness, and predicted communism would bury capitalism. (Some prediction!)

Seeking to deflect criticism of Russia’s lack of freedoms, he was on the offensive. At a state dinner hosted by President Eisenhower, Khrushchev got into an exchange with Vice President Nixon about the US press, suggesting that it was a submissive handmaiden of the American government. Present in the room was the editor of The Christian Science Monitor, Erwin Canham. Pointing to Canham, Nixon explained that he couldn’t possibly control the editorial policy of the Monitor, Canham’s newspaper. Khrushchev responded dismissively: “I don’t believe you.”

In the Monitor
Thursday, 04/28/05
How one school system took on steroids
Hopes for recovery amid San Diego’s mess
Goal: educate world’s kids with $100 PCs
Las Vegas glitz dulled by growing pains
COMMENTARY: There’s no place like home for take-the-kids-to-work day

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Incredibly, almost half a century later, Russia’s current leader, Vladimir Putin, was as similarly defensive about Russia’s lack of media independence, and as similarly lacking in his understanding of American freedoms. At his meeting in Europe with President Bush earlier this year, President Putin argued that if the US press was so free, how come Mr. Bush had been able to get rid of Dan Rather and those other pesky CBS reporters? The Russian’s apparent belief that in the US, the president could fire reporters filled Bush and his staff with incredulity.

These two little anecdotes, more than four decades apart, underline a continuing lack of comprehension at high Russian levels of what democracy really means, and how it works.

It is a misunderstanding that bedevils the US-Russian relationship as Bush preaches the values of democracy, and Putin proclaims them but edges away from practicing them.

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The Vacation Spanish Blog was updated today. The URI is www.vacationspanish.com. New content added today includes:

* Table of Contents
* Acknowledgements
* Excerpt
* Sample Chapter
* Bonus Chapter
* Reviews & Endorsements
* About the Authors
* About the Publishers
* Contact

Please feel free to add your comments.

The Vacation Spanish Blog was published yesterday. The URI is www.vacationspanish.com. Please feel free to add your comments.

Christopher Hurtado’s Blog was published yesterday.

Common Sense Advisory has published a new Quick Take. Last month we wrote that Lionbridge acquired Berlin-based Logoport for its translation memory technology and that Irish language service provider (LSP) Transware PLC bought globalization management (GMS) supplier Global Sight. The Lionbridge deal makes sense, while the Transware purchase seems misguided. In this Quick Take we lay out what makes one deal better than the other. (Renato Beninatto)

Hispanic Marketing SIG – “The Case for Hispanic Marketing: A conversation with Alex Lopez Negrete”

When:
April 28, 2005

Where:
Renaissance Hotel Greenway Plaza
Plaza Ballroom, 20th Floor
6 Greenway Plaza East
Houston, Texas 77046

Parking Information:
Parking is available in the Greenway Plaza Garage below the hotel entrance.

Schedule:
7:30 a.m. – 8:00 a.m. Breakfast and Registration
8:00 a.m. – 10:00 a.m. Discussion

Program Description:
Hispanics are the fastest growing population segment in the U.S. With more Hispanics in the U.S. than Canadians in Canada and with $700 billion of purchasing power, Hispanics are one of the most attractive markets in the country. However, very few companies are taking advantage of the great opportunities and untapped revenue streams that Hispanics represent. Alex Lopez Negrete will have an informal discussion about why Hispanic marketing makes business sense for many companies. In an innovative event format, a business journalist from the Houston Chronicle will pose provocative questions and facilitate the dialogue.

Speaker Bio:
Alex López Negrete
President, CEO, and Chief Creative Officer – López Negrete Communications

Since he founded López Negrete Communications in 1985, Alex López Negrete’s passion and vision for Hispanic marketing has steered the firm to become one of the country’s most influential Hispanic marketing consultants and partners. His agency continues to grow, with over $80 million in billings for 2003 and more than 90 employees. Alex credits his success to building a team of multi-cultural, multi-national, bilingual and bicultural communications professionals who possess different and complementing talents and expertise. The López Negrete team has won literally hundreds of awards and accolades over the years and was recently awarded the Silver Medal, the highest honor granted by the Houston Advertising Federation. Alex is this year’s National President of the Association of Hispanic Advertising Agencies.

Admission & RSVP:
Advance Registration: AMA Members $25; Non-members $45; Students $18.
At the door: AMA Members $35; Non-Members $55

Register online at www.regonline.com/23330. Simply click the link, and follow the directions. If you get an error message when you click this link, cut it and paste into your browser. Pre-payment will be accepted online. Please RSVP by 12 p.m. on April 26.
No shows will be billed for this event. If you cannot attend after you register, please return to the online registration and cancel your registration. You may cancel your registration up to the time we close our registration. Walk-ins will not be guaranteed seating.

For questions or comments regarding registering online, please email Rodi Franco at [email protected]

Contact Name and Email for Additional Information on the Event:
For more information on this event, please contact Manuel Delgado at [email protected] or 832-242-2600 or Christopher Hurtado at [email protected] or 281-658-6002.

Map:
Click here for directions.

The Association of Hispanic Advertising Agencies (AHAA) announced its new board of directors at AHAA’s recent conference in San Antonio. Alex Lopez Negrete, president and CEO of Lopez Negrete Communications will lead the dynamic organization as chairman and Carl Kravetz, chairman and CEO of Cruz/Kravetz: IDEAS will serve as the chairman-elect. Stepping down from this position is Manuel E. Machado, CEO of MGS Communications.

In his inaugural speech as president of AHAA, Lopez Negrete said, “We will make sure that we have an organization that never looses focus on its core mission to communicate the value of what we do and of the community we represent to the highest levels of the corporate board rooms.”

The Association of Hispanic Advertising Agencies (http://www.ahaa.org) is the national organization of firms that specialize in marketing to the nation’s 43.5 million Hispanic consumers, the most rapidly growing segment of the American population. AHAA promotes the strength of the Hispanic marketing and advertising industry to the private and public sectors.

AHAA agencies offer a unique blend of cultural understanding, market intelligence, proven experience and professionalism that deliver Hispanic market success for clients. AHAA helps organizations gain market share, increase revenue and grow profits by building the bridges and delivering the messages to reach America’s Hispanic consumers, who together have an estimated buying power of nearly $700 billion.

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If you’re in marketing, you’ve heard the numbers: Forty million Hispanics live in the U.S. and represent approximately $686 billion in spending power, an estimated $6 billion of it funneled to entertainment. Although they’re only 13.4% of the population, they account for an estimated 20% of movie-ticket sales, and some say that number is as high as 50% for an opening weekend in Los Angeles.

Formidable by all counts, one would naturally assume the Latino community is being courted by the Hollywood power structure through strategic casting, choice of story material and targeted advertising. Yes and no.

…the industry still has a long way to go. At this point, Latinos just don’t have the onscreen recognition they feel they deserve to accurately reflect their commercial and cultural clout.

While many studios and networks have created slots for executives in charge of Hispanic marketing, supported by a variety of independent consultancies, there are those who complain that the amount of money spent to back such initiatives is paltry compared to the prize at stake.

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The United States is in the top 10 when it comes to getting little sleep, with 19 percent of the population logging 6 hours or less during the week. That’s among findings of a new study of sleep habits conducted by ACNielsen.

The study, which looked beyond the United States, found this country is a nation of night owls and early birds. More than a third of U.S. adults go to bed after midnight during the week, while nearly the same number are out of bed by 6 a.m.

“The Internet, laptop computers, PDAs, cell phones, and ever-rising expectations about what one can get done in a day have created a 24/7 global culture,” stated ACNielsen spokesman Tom Markert.

The research organization cited National Institutes of Health estimates that some 70 million Americans suffer from some form of sleep disorder. The survey was conducted over the Internet in 28 global markets and involved more than 14,000 adults.

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From 2000-2004, dollars spent by the top-50 advertisers to reach the U.S. Hispanic market grew from $658.37 million to $1.23 billion, according to a new HispanTelligence research report.

otal monies spent by the top-50 advertisers to reach the U.S. Hispanic market have grown more impressively than the overall market itself despite slowing in growth in recent years. From 2000-2004, dollars spent by the top-50 advertisers grew from $658.37 million to $1.23 billion, an 87 percent increase. The dramatic increase in advertising expenses serves as an indirect indicator of advertising investment satisfaction by existing advertisers. Large companies like Procter & Gamble, General Motors, McDonald’s, and Coca-Cola have continually increased the amount of money they are spending to reach this coveted market. Companies that have just entered the market are finding themselves far behind those that have been involved all along, but are spending large amounts to make up lost ground. Most notably, Lexicon Marketing, developer and marketer of Inglés sin Barreras, a video-based English learning program, has increased its advertising investment from $12.56 to $75.00 million in little over a year, and is now challenging the venerable Procter & Gamble for the top position.

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The unemployment rate for Hispanics dropped from 6.4 percent to 5.7 percent in March, according to recently released data from the U.S. Labor Department.

Unemployment among Hispanics remained 0.5 percent higher than total U.S. unemployment, which was 5.2 percent.

By age and sex, unemployment among Hispanics ages 20 and over was 5.3 percent for men and 5.8 percent for women. The unemployment rate among Hispanics ages 16 to 19 dropped from 21.2 percent in February to 18.8 percent in March, reflecting 14,000 new jobs going to young Hispanic job seekers and the withdrawal of 12,000 Hispanic youths from the U.S. labor force.

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