Latinos | Rosetta Thurman

Young Latinos Will Shape America. Do Nonprofits Care?

December 18, 2009 by rosettathurman · 4 Comments

We know that white people are fast becoming the minority in the U.S. And contrary to popular belief, African Americans will not be the majority race in the next half-century: it will be Hispanics. Specifically, new Pew Hispanic Center research from a telephone survey of a nationally representative sample of 2,012 Latinos suggests that young Latinos will be the ones who will shape America in the 21st century. Just look at the numbers:

Hispanics are the largest and youngest minority group in the United States. One- in-five schoolchildren is Hispanic. One-in-four newborns is Hispanic. Never before in this country’s history has a minority ethnic group made up so large a share of the youngest Americans. By force of numbers alone, the kinds of adults these young Latinos become will help shape the kind of society America becomes in the 21st century.

You can read the full report here. I think these kinds of reports are quite useful if one is interested in keeping up with the trends. We can start to predict what groups will be key to engage if we want to create real social change. But what I’ve noticed is that in the nonprofit leadership development conversation, the focus is mostly on building a pipeline of African American leadership. I don’t see nonprofits trying at all to tap into the talents of young Latino leaders. I know that Hispanics in Philanthropy offers a wealth of support for Hispanic nonprofit leaders, but the only program I could find that might be supporting next generation leaders was this Talent Bank, which is listed as “coming soon.”

So am I imagining this or are there efforts around the country that seek to help young Latinos build leadership skills for social change? If so, I would really like to learn about them so please share any links if you have them!

Photo credit: Blogamole

Filed Under: Leaders of Color, Next Generation Leadership, Race · Tagged With: Hispanics, Hispanics in Philanthropy, Latinos, Pew Hispanic Center

Celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month: Meet Jean-Paul Chaurand, Greater Kansas City Community Foundation

October 15, 2009 by rosettathurman · 1 Comment

This is the fourth and final interview in this month’s series celebrating the leadership of Hispanics in the nonprofit sector. I’m profiling several nonprofit leaders I admire for the impact they make on their communities every day.

Jean-Paul Chaurand is the Senior Vice President of Community Investment at the Greater Kansas City Community Foundation. From his first job in the nonprofit sector at 15 years old, Jean-Paul’s career spans years of work on behalf of the Latino community. In this brief interview, Jean-Paul shares the path he took to get to his position at the Foundation and his advice for young people following in his footsteps.

How did you make your way into the nonprofit sector?

I grew up volunteering my time for nonprofit organizations. Giving back to the community is a value that was instilled in me at a very early age by my parents. My first job in the sector was when I was 15 years old. I was a counselor in an after school tutoring program in my neighborhood. After that I interned for a few different community based organizations and then I started working full time for a couple of them doing a host of things from development work to events and programs. In time I felt I had the skills I needed to run the organization and was lucky enough to have the opportunity to run a community development corporation. Eventually I joined the team at the Greater Kansas City Community Foundation.

What is your current position and day-to-day work?

My current position is senior vice president. My day to day activities change but they include leading a team of people who oversee the Community Foundation’s grant making activities, helping donors establish charitable funds so they can begin organizing their giving, and providing knowledge about local nonprofits and community initiatives that will make the region a better place so donors can become even smarter investors in the community. Everything we do ties back to our mission of increasing giving, connecting donors and leading on critical community issues.

What is your educational background and area of expertise?

I received a bachelor of arts in urban affairs/urban planning from the University of Missouri at Kansas City and I am a graduate of UMKC’s Bloch School executive MBA program. Prior to coming to the Foundation, I was executive director of the Hispanic Economic Development Corporation where I worked to improve the quality of life for Latinos in Kansas City through the development and implementation of economic development initiatives. I’ve also served as economic development specialist for the National Council of La Raza in Chicago, Illinois; director of development and policy analyst for the Guadalupe Center; and I served as coordinator for the Coalition of Hispanic Organizations.

The Chronicle of Philanthropy has reported that 82% of nonprofit CEOs are white. What does that mean for Latino leaders and other people of color who aspire to leadership roles in the future?

I want all of those aspiring for leadership roles to know that opportunities are out there. I am seeing more and more agencies – no matter what the leadership ethnicity is – embrace a commitment to recruiting, retaining and cultivating people of color. At the Community Foundation we are firm in our commitment to diversity: As the community’s foundation, we are committed to promoting equity and inclusion throughout the region we serve, and it is our obligation to model diversity and focus the community conversation on racial equity.

What advice would you give to young people who want to change the world?

Do it. You can change the world. Just work at it one day at a time. Most importantly, don’t wait for the opportunity to come to you. There’s no better time than now to get started.

Filed Under: Interviews, Leaders of Color, Leadership · Tagged With: Greater Kansas City Community Foundation, Hispanics, Jean-Paul Chaurand, Latinos, National Hispanic Heritage Month

Celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month: Meet Danielle Reyes, Program Officer at the Eugene & Agnes Meyer Foundation

October 7, 2009 by rosettathurman · 1 Comment

This is the third interview in this month’s series celebrating the leadership of Hispanics in the nonprofit sector. I’m profiling several nonprofit leaders I admire for the impact they make on their communities every day.

In my experiences working in fundraising, it’s not a rare thing to meet a program officer at a foundation who has never worked in a nonprofit organization, and doesn’t immediately seem to understand the work that we do. That is refreshingly not the case with Danielle Reyes, Program Officer at the Eugene and Agnes E. Meyer Foundation located in Washington, DC. A former nonprofit Executive Director, teacher, and Peace Corps volunteer, she understands the unique challenges nonprofits face. I’ve had the pleasure of getting to know Danielle through my DC nonprofit work, committees we’ve served on together, and, of course, Facebook. If I had to describe Danielle in one word, it would be: thoughtful. She is always thinking about how to connect organizations, people, and resources for the greater cause. She sees the big picture of social justice and our Washington, DC nonprofit community is much better for it.

Over the last 17 years Danielle Reyes has worked on issues concerning low-income, minority, and immigrant populations, with an emphasis on education. Before joining the Meyer Foundation, Ms. Reyes served as executive director of the Latino Student Fund. She also worked as a senior program specialist for the national nonprofit, Reading Is Fundamental. Prior to working in the nonprofit sector, Ms. Reyes spent several years teaching as a public school teacher, a university instructor, and as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Morocco. Ms. Reyes received her bachelor’s degree in English and in Spanish from the University of Michigan. She also holds a master’s degree in teaching English as a foreign language from Manhattanville College and a master’s degree in administration, planning, and social policy from Harvard University. Ms. Reyes was a Council on Foundation’s Emerging Philanthropic Leaders Fellow 2005-2007. She is the Vice Chair of the board of directors of Asian Americans/Pacific Islanders in Philanthropy. She is the founding Chair of the Metropolitan DC Hispanics in Philanthropy Funders’ Collaborative.

Check out my full interview with Danielle after the jump… [Read more...]

Filed Under: Interviews, Leaders of Color, Leadership · Tagged With: Danielle M. Reyes, Danielle Reyes, Eugene and Agnes Meyer Foundation, Hispanics, Hispanics in Philanthropy, Latinos, Meyer Foundation, National Hispanic Heritage Month

Celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month: Meet Irma Rodriguez, Executive Director of Queens Community House

September 30, 2009 by rosetta · 2 Comments

This is the second interview in this month’s series celebrating the leadership of Hispanics in the nonprofit sector. I’m profiling several nonprofit leaders I admire for the impact they make on their communities every day.

Some people you just connect with instantly, whether it be online or in person. That was the case when I initially emailed Irma Rodriguez, Executive Director of Queens Community House in New York. Her informal warmth and willingness to share her knowledge with the next generation was evident in the exchanges I had with her. I honestly had no idea who Irma Rodriguez was until Ian Bautista at UNCA told me about her. Yet as I began to research Irma’s work, I became more and more inspired.

Since 1975, Queens Community House (originally named Forest Hills Community House) has been committed to the personal growth of the diverse people it serves and to the creation of self-reliant, open, responsible communities. Established in the settlement house tradition, it provides an array of programs and services for youth, families and older adults. Today, Queens Community House has over 400 full and part-time staff, offering youth, community and senior programs in 20 sites, and serves over 20,000 people a year. As recently profiled in a Building Movement Project case study, Queens Community House made a commitment ten years ago to return to its activist roots. The organization is dedicated to integrating constituent voices into its work despite the size and scope of its service delivery programs and the diversity of the people they serve.

A community organizer at heart, Irma’s career spans decades of nonprofit work involving civil rights and communities of color. I appreciate her taking the time to share her insight with all you dear readers in honor of National Hispanic Heritage Month. Read my full interview with Irma after the jump… [Read more...]

Filed Under: Interviews, Leaders of Color, Leadership · Tagged With: Hispanics, Irma Rodriguez, Latinos, Leaders of Color, National Hispanic Heritage Month, Queens Community House

Celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month: Meet Ian Bautista, President of UNCA

September 23, 2009 by rosetta · 2 Comments

This is the first interview in this month’s series celebrating the leadership of Hispanics in the nonprofit sector. I’m profiling several nonprofit leaders I admire for the impact they make on their communities every day.

First up is Ian Bautista, President of United Neighborhood Centers of America. I met Ian about a year ago at the National Human Services Assembly conference in Washington, DC and I instantly connected to his warm demeanor and interest in nonprofit diversity efforts. We’ve been Facebook and Twitter friends ever since, and I always enjoy reading his thoughts on community, nonprofit work and family. I’m excited to introduce him to all of you dear readers.

A native of Kansas City, Kansas, Ian lives with his wife, Elsa, and his daughter Iana, in Whitefish Bay, Wisconsin. Since April of 2006, Bautista has served as the President of the United Neighborhood Centers of America (UNCA), the national non-profit membership network of settlement houses and neighborhood centers in the U.S.

Prior to UNCA, Bautista served as the President & CEO of El Centro, Inc, a Management Consultant forNeighborWorks® America, and the State of Kansas at the Kansas Hispanic and Latino American Affairs Commission (KHLAAC). Bautista serves on the board of directors of the National Human Services Assembly, the board of trustees of the Sigma Lambda Beta Educational Foundation, and the board of directors of Select Milwaukee. In his spare time, Bautista has volunteered as a youth debate coach, a marriage preparation trainer and 2nd grade catechist for his church. He enjoys spending time with family and friends, working on issues of social justice, the arts (music and visual), following and playing team sports (especially Kansas State University and Kansas City teams), intercultural exploration, leadership development, and cooking.