A professional development program aimed at increasing Latino leadership in North Carolina education is expected to quadruple in size this year.
LatinxEd, an education nonprofit that serves the Latino community, opened applications this week for its third fellowship cycle. The new cohort of education leaders is expected to grow from 15 to about 70 people, following a $500,000 award from NewSchools Venture Fund.
To participate, applicants should have cultural roots in Latin America and reside in North Carolina.
The selected group will include youth, adults and professionals from diverse backgrounds, said fellowship manager Mirella Cisneros. Participants are not required to be U.S. citizens or to speak Spanish.
“We want to recognize the spectrum of leadership that exists in our community,” Cisneros said. “We believe that you can be an education leader regardless of your age or your career path.”
A goal of the program is to increase Latino representation in the education system and, as a result, better serve the Latino community.
“A lot of us have that personal experience going through the education system, not seeing ourselves represented, feeling isolated, or just like we can't show up as who we really are because representation isn't there,” Cisneros said. “This is an opportunity to, one, continue to address those needs, but also uplift the number of education leaders we have across the state.”
The application deadline is April 23. The six-month program begins in June.
