What college did Sylvia Mendez go to?

Sylvia Mendez was born in Orange County and attended Orange Coast Community College where she earned her Associate of Arts degree in nursing. She went on to California State University at Los Angeles where she earned her Bachelor of Science Degree in Nursing and a Certificate in Public Health.

What university did Sylvia Mendez go to?

After the Mendez court case, Sylvia attended the desegregated Westminster elementary school. Later she graduated with an associate's degree in nursing from Orange Coast Community College. She then earned a bachelor's degree in nursing and a public health certificate from California State University at Los Angeles.

How long was Sylvia Mendez a nurse for?

She worked 33 years as a nurse at the Los Angeles USC Medical Center, becoming Assistant Nursing Director of the Pediatric Pavilion. Since Miss Mendez retired, she has traveled to all seven continents and visited over 60 countries.

What happened to Sylvia Mendez in 2011?

About Mendez v. Westminster. Sylvia Mendez, who received the Presidential Medal of Freedom at a 2011 White House ceremony, was a child when she was turned away from a California public school for "whites only." That rejection fueled her father's determined journey through school, civic, and legal channels.

Who was Gonzalo Mendez?

Felicitas and Gonzalo Mendez, who successfully ran an agricultural business, are American civil rights activists. In 1940, the Mendez family resided in the city of Westminster where at the time the school district mandated schools in Orange County to be segregated campuses for Hispanics and Whites.

Voices of History: Sylvia Mendez

What does Sylvia Mendez do now?

Mendez became a nurse and retired after working for thirty years in her field. She adopted two girls and lives in Fullerton, California. She travels and gives lectures to educate others on the historic contributions made by her parents and the co-plaintiffs to the desegregation effort in the United States.

Where did Sylvia Mendez grow up?

Mendez's father, Gonzalo, was from Mexico, and her mother, Felicitas, was from Puerto Rico. When Sylvia was a child, her family moved to Westminster in Orange county, California. In 1944, when she was eight, her family tried to register Sylvia and her brothers at a nearby Westminster elementary school.

What did Sylvia Mendez become?

Sylvia made her career as a registered nurse and now devotes her time to traveling and lecturing on the historic contribution she and her parents made to civil rights in the U.S. She received the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2011.

How many kids does Sylvia Mendez have?

She adopted two daughters and has four grandchildren. She spends her retirement traveling abroad. She has visited all 7 continents. Sylvia enjoys spending time with her family and educating others on the Mendez v Westminster case.

What was Sylvia Mendez first job?

After graduating from high school, Sylvia attended Orange Coast Community College and California State University, Los Angeles, earning multiple nursing degrees and a certificate in public health. She started her career as a pediatric nurse, eventually moving to assistant nursing director.

Did Thurgood Marshall represent Sylvia Mendez?

Thurgood Marshall represented Sylvia Mendez and Linda Brown. Marshall used some of the same arguments from Mendez to win Brown v. Board of Education.

How many siblings did Sylvia Mendez have?

From Working in the Fields to Managing a Farm

After saving up money from years of farm labor, Felicitas and Gonzalo moved to Santa Ana, California. They opened and ran a successful restaurant. The Arizona Cantina, and had three children: Sylvia, Gonzalo Jr, and Jerome.

When did Sylvia Mendez become an activist?

When Sylvia was in third grade, she and her siblings were denied admission to the segregated, "white school" near their Orange County home. The Mendez family fought back. Their 1947 victory desegregated public schools in California and became an example for broader decisions, such as the Brown v Board of education.

What is the book about Sylvia Mendez?

Seven years before Brown v. Board of Education, the Mendez family fought to end segregation in California schools. Discover their incredible story in Separate Is Never Equal, a picture book from award-winning creator Duncan Tonatiuh.

What was the Mendez case against school segregation?

BRIA 23 2 c Mendez v Westminster: Paving the Way to School Desegregation. In 1947, parents won a federal lawsuit against several California school districts that had segregated Mexican-American schoolchildren. For the first time, this case introduced evidence in a court that school segregation harmed minority children.

How old was Sylvia Mendez when she went to court?

It was a Tuesday morning in the summer of 1945, and Mendez was explaining to a judge how, the previous fall, he had tried to enroll 8-year-old Sylvia and her little brothers in an Orange County public school near their home in Westminster, Ca.

What is the history of the Westminster school?

Westminster's origins can be traced to a charity school established by the Benedictine monks of Westminster Abbey. Its continuous existence is certain from the early fourteenth century. After the dissolution of the monasteries in 1540, Henry VIII personally ensured the School's survival by statute.

What medal did Sylvia Mendez win?

Mendez retired after 30 years as a nurse and began traveling the country giving talks about how her family's struggle paved the way for desegregation. In 2011, President Barack Obama awarded her the Presidential Medal of Freedom for her civil rights work.

When was Gonzalo Mendez born?

Gonzalo Mendez was born in Mexico in 1913. Mendez, his mother, and her other four children moved to Westminster, California, in 1919. In 1943, at age 30, he became a naturalized citizen of the United States and was a relatively well-off vegetable farmer.

Why did Mendez vs Westminster happen?

Felicitas and Gonzalo Mendez took legal action after their children were not allowed to enroll at their neighborhood school in Westminster. Their case, Mendez v. Westminster, would go on to outlaw forced school segregation in California. And it was upheld there the following year — on April 14, 1947, to be exact.

Why did Sylvia Mendez get the Medal of Freedom?

Description. President Obama presented the Presidential Medal of Freedom to Sylvia Mendez for her Civil Rights activism and continued impact on education.