Latino Cultural Center plans several events for Heritage Month
The Latino Cultural Center will celebrate the annual Latino Heritage Month from Sept. 15 through Oct. 12 with several events focused on the theme of "Latinas: Strength and Power."
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — Purdue University’s Latino Cultural Center will celebrate the annual Latino Heritage Month from Sept. 15 through Oct. 12 with several events focused on the theme of "Latinas: Strength and Power."
Purdue’s events are part of national Hispanic Heritage Month, which was established in 1968. In fall 2009, there were 1,107 Latino students enrolled at Purdue.
“The Latino Cultural Center is a focal point of the local celebration of national Hispanic Heritage Month,” said LCC director Maricela Alvarado. “This year we’ll examine the role of Latinas (women) in domestic Latino culture in the United States and their impact on the rest of society.”
Scheduled events include:
* 4-6 p.m. Sept. 15. Latino Heritage Month will begin with the Latino Cultural Center Open House. The center will welcome new and returning students and faculty and staff back to campus. The guest speaker will be Maryann Santos de Barona, dean of Purdue’s School of Education.
* 6-9 p.m. Sept. 21. The Latino Cultural Center will present “Amor Sin Violencia — Exploring Solutions to Prevent Violence and Oppression Against Latinas” in the Mechanical Engineering Building, Room 156. Using a forum theater-experiential learning model, participants will examine causes of sexual violence in the lives of Latina immigrants and farm workers and will look at solutions.
* 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sept. 28. The Latino Faculty/Staff Association’s Latino Scholars Forum, which takes place in Stewart Center, highlights scholarly research and provides workshops, speakers and networking opportunities.
* 10 a.m. Oct. 2. The Latino Cultural Center's La Polilla Café bilingual book club will meet at the center to discuss “America’s Dream,” Esmeralda Santiago’s novel about a woman from Puerto Rico who leaves her hotel cleaning job to be a nanny in Westchester, N.Y.
* 5 p.m. Oct. 4. Annette Martinez, vice president of operations-human resources at State Farm Insurance, will give the Latino Heritage Month keynote lecture in the Krannert Building Auditorium. The highest-ranking Latina at State Farm, Martinez has played a key role in creating State Farm’s diversity and inclusion office. Her work has led to State Farm being recognized by several national Hispanic organizations.
For more information about Latino Heritage Month events, visit https://www.purdue.edu/lcc
The Latino Cultural Center was established in 2003 as Purdue’s first center for Hispanic and Latino culture. The organization is a gathering place where people of similar cultures and backgrounds can come together to share events in the university community.
Writer: Greg McClure, gmcclure@purdue.edu
Source: Maricela Alvarado, 765-494-2530, alvaradm@purdue.edu