November 16, 2021
Greetings fellow administrators, members, and supporters of NHAE,
As we now move into the second quarter of the academic year, let us think about what we have accomplished during the first quarter. As school leaders we have safely opened schools for all our students and have once again built community within the school building among the students and staff. While -it is clear- based on beginning of year data, that we have more students that will need additional supports to move them towards grade level this year, we also witnessed the joy that students bring when they are able to interact with their peers’ face to face. What a blessing this has been!
At our September meeting we had one of the largest turnouts for a general membership meeting in a long time. Our membership came out to welcome our first Latino CEO -not in an interim position- Pedro Martinez from our very own Pilsen neighborhood in Chicago. CEO Martinez gracefully took questions from the membership and stayed well past the time he promised. During the meeting he committed to meeting on a quarterly basis with the executive committee and highlighted three areas of focus: t
Ø Talent: Latino leadership pipeline, and equitable representation in the district
Ø Equity: in funding and program access at neighborhood schools
Ø Dual Language Education and other programs for our ELLs
CEO Martinez even stayed to take pictures with the membership; it felt like one of our typical Latino milestone celebrations.
This month our guest is Adrian Segura, who is serving as the Chief Officer of the CPS Family and Community Engagement (FACE) office. He will share with us the strategy his office has to re-engage our families with the schools, as this has been a challenge due the current pandemic. Mr. Segura comes to us from my original neighborhood, Humboldt Park. Once again, we have achieved a milestone at CPS, by having our first Latino heading the FACE office in a district that is 47% Latino.
Finally, as we celebrate National Native American month, let us remember the contributions of the first stewards of the lands in the Americas, the history of colonization in these lands, and how that has affected us as Latinos. As Latinos the blood of our indigenous ancestors runs through our veins and lives within us today. Let us be thankful that in our city and state teachers are free to teach the true history of this country, both the accomplishments and the mistakes. For it is by reflecting on our mistakes of the past that we can ensure a better future for us and the children we serve. I wish everyone a happy early Thanksgiving and hope you can spend it with the people you love.
Dr. Antonio Acevedo
President of the Network of Hispanic Administrators in Education.
September 29, 2021
Greetings fellow administrators, members, and supporters of NHAE:
Welcome to the new academic year and at this point school has been in session at CPS for a month now. Who would have thought that we could open schools for in-person learning for almost all of our students? Yet, we did it, and we have done everything in our power to keep our students safe while providing them with a sense of community in their classrooms alongside high quality instruction. What an achievement!
Yes, there have been a few bumps in the road, but as school leaders, we have learned to respond to the ever changing COVID world that we now live in. We are experts at adapting to changes in our school environment and reassuring the families we serve we are doing what is best for them. Congratulations for continuing on this journey.
As an organization, we have fought hard for equity in Latino and Latina representation at the various leadership levels in CPS. Today we are proud to announce that for the first time in CPS history, our district will be led by a Latino CEO that is not an interim CEO. We have had two interim Latino CEOs before. Just recently Dr. Jose Torres led us through a transition period and we are most grateful for what he accomplished with respect to re-engaging students in the short time he was our interim CEO. Before that, Jesse Ruiz served as interim CEO. But today our district of over 340,000 students that is 46.7% Latino has as its leader a Latino CEO and one that is originally from Chicago and from the historic Mexican-American neighborhood of Pilsen. ¡Bienvenido CEO Martinez!
As the premier Latino organization of CPS school leaders, we look forward to meeting regularly with you as we work towards our goals:
1. Advocating for the educational rights of Hispanic students.
2. Supporting and enhancing Bilingual, ESL (English as a Second Language), Multicultural Education, World Language and Dual Language Programs
3. Providing members with a support and professional development network which includes conferences and mentoring.
4. Providing a forum for the presentation and discussion of issues related to school reform as it affects the Hispanic community.
5. Maintaining an open dialogue collaboration and communication with organizations, community associations and other ethnically and racially diverse groups to provide quality educational services for all.
As we continue celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month, let's remember all the Latino and Latina pioneers who came before us and paved the way so that one day we could finally have the position of the mero mero at CPS.
Keep up the great work and continue celebrating and elevating our own beautiful Latino and Latin American cultures and those of the communities we serve during our month. ¡Que viva la Raza!
Dr. Antonio Acevedo
President of the Network of Hispanic Administrators in Education.
Dear Fellow NHAE Members and Friends:
Welcome back to school! We start this year with mixed emotions such as hope, excitement, determination, compassion, trepidation, and acknowledgement of our respective losses. Let us take a moment to take a deep breath and find strength within ourselves for the difficult task ahead of us. We are in this together and here for the many teachers, parents and students within our school communities.
Please know that you can depend on NHAE as CPS returns to in-person learning. We are sharing the dates for the meetings as well as the membership application form. We welcome you to continue your participation in our organization. Feel free to forward this message to other administrators.
Dues will be collected once again for the SY 21-22. Mail your $60.00 payable check out to NHAE. Mail it to Elba M. Iniguez, 3418 W. Pershing Road, Chicago, IL 60632. Please provide a personal email address instead of the CPS work email address so you may receive future notices.
We are excited to have our first General meeting in person and virtually. It will take place on September 29th at Mi Tierra @5:00-7:00pm. Mi Tierra is located in the Little Village neighborhood at 2528 S. Kedzie Avenue. Parking is available across the street. Individuals who attend in person pay $25.00 for a food at the restaurant. Please RSVP by September 8th, so we may have the correct amount of food cooked. Thank you for your continued support.
In Solidarity,
NHAE Executive Board
2021-2022 NHAE Membership Application Form