New CCC director vows to provide more opportunities for first-generation and underrepresented students

Araceli Martinez, the new executive director of the Cross-Cultural Center (CCC), was appointed to her new position this June to oversee and create new programs and opportunities for first-generation and underrepresented students and increase student accessibility to the CCC. Photo from The Panther Archives

Chapman University’s Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) welcomed Araceli Martinez to campus to serve as the executive director of the Cross-Cultural Center (CCC) and First-Generation Programs for the new school year — two roles she has exciting new plans for.

After spending 15 years helping to lead the Multicultural Center at the University of Nevada, Reno, Martinez has high hopes to bring her prior experience to Chapman to represent and aid underrepresented students. Her new role will oversee programming for both the Cross-Cultural Center and the Promising Futures First-Generation Program (PFP) on campus.

“My vision for this new role is to make the CCC space a home away from home for all students at Chapman,” Martinez told The Panther. “We’ve all had similar experiences, challenges and barriers, but we all had the goal of improving ourselves, taking advantage of better opportunities that our parents never had and succeeding to reach our aspirations.”

According to Martinez, the move to bring the CCC and the PFP program together within the Office of DEI is aimed at helping to better support both new and returning students with transitioning into the college lifestyle and also finding a place on campus to meet new people and build a community.

Araceli Martinez said her vision was to make the CCC a “home away from home” for all students at Chapman. Photo courtesy of Chapman University

“I’m looking forward to seeing Director Martinez continue creating opportunities for first-generation and underrepresented students on campus,” said Alesia Orta, a junior screenwriting and communication studies double major.

Orta also serves as the vice president of the First-Generation Ambassadors, a student-run club on campus geared towards helping first-gen students and allies build a stronger sense of community on campus through events, meetings and workshops.

“I was able to work with director Martinez during the First-Generation Summer Bridge Program this past summer, and I was very excited with the new ideas and events Martinez and her staff added to the program, especially the Student Club Resource Fair,” Orta said.

With Martinez now taking the lead for both the CCC and the PFP program, she said her top priority is to expand both programs by connecting and collaborating with other campus organizations in order to make them more visible and accessible to students who want to take part in them.

“Martinez has the extensive knowledge to bring a lot more exposure to the CCC and first-generation programs, which I believe will spark an interest in the Chapman community,” said senior software engineering major Kevin Oropeza, who also serves as one of the co-presidents of First-Generation Ambassadors. “The first step in doing so is advertising the CCC so that students know what it is and what it can do for them. I believe Martinez has no problem accomplishing these two tasks as well as a lot more.”

In light of the new school year, Chapman also announced that the university’s highest-ever rate of first-generation students were admitted to campus this fall. Over 22% of new students admitted this year identify as first-generation students — a significant increase over the university’s current undergraduate student population, where 17.6% identify as first-generation.

“This increase in the first-generation student population on campus is a reflection of our commitment as a university to our continued support, recruitment and retainment of first-generation college students,” said Quaylan Allen, an education professor and former director of PF. “Hopefully, incoming students see Chapman as a place where they belong, where they feel like they can succeed and where they feel like they can be truly supported.”

This increase in the university’s first-generation population reflects Chapman’s commitment to aid underrepresented students, which Martinez hopes to increase further through the CCC and other DEI and college resources. 

Martinez hopes to create various programs this year that will help promote self-identity exploration for all students, connecting each program back to the CCC’s four key pillars — respect, perseverance, resilience and hope. 

“With Martinez being the new CCC and first-generation director, it’s exciting to see what she can achieve for the 2022-2023 school year,” said sophomore graphic design major Yandel Salas, who serves as the graphic designer for First-Generation Ambassadors. “In regards to first-gen and CCC programming, I’d hope to see the implementation of events that can cover a variety of scopes.”

Martinez and her staff are already in the process of creating new opportunities to make the CCC welcoming for all students on campus to partake in. According to an email to the First-Generation clubs and the First-Generation Advisory Board on campus, Martinez is currently in the works of collaborating with students, professors and local artists to create a mural that will be displayed for all to see upon arrival at the CCC.

“Honestly, I hadn’t even known that we had a CCC before this year,” said junior peace studies and political science double major Mariana Juarez, who serves as the events coordinator for First-Generation Ambassadors. “I feel like (Martinez) might be a good thing for first-generation programming, and I’ve already heard a lot of good things about her even with the school year only just beginning.”

Having been a first-generation Latinx student herself, Martinez understands the struggles of entering college without knowing what to expect, and she hopes to use her role at the CCC to serve as a mentor and guide for students going through that same experience. 
Martinez hopes to work with Maya Yesharim, the newest full-time Student Success Coordinator at the CCC, and Office of DEI staff, including Director of Latinx Achievement Gabriela Castañeda and Director of Black Excellence and Achievement Misty Levingston