Presenters
Click on the names below to learn more about each of our presenters!
Keynote Speakers
Click on the names below to learn more about each of our presenters!
Elizabeth Herrera
As the third oldest of ten and her family roots from Guanajuato, Mexico, Iza has a profound sense of responsibility and passion for supporting others. Her journey is a testament to resilience and determination. Iza graduated from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 2019. Following graduation, she joined AmeriCorps, dedicating two transformative years as a college advisor. Stationed in a high school with a significant Latinx population, she became a vital link between students, families, and the education system. Iza believes in the transformative power of education and is dedicated to equipping students with the essential tools they need to flourish. After her service, she came to a crossroads where she had to choose between pursuing her journey to become a doctor or continuing her role as an advisor, potentially shaping the futures of what could be many Latine doctors… and so she chose to foster representation across all spheres. Iza returned to her rural eastern hometown, co-founding Casa Azul de Wilson alongside her older sister, Flor Herrera-Picasso. They felt the need to create the resources they wished they had when they were younger. Iza leverages the power of storytelling to help her students recognize their unique strengths and untapped potential. By empowering and guiding students, she contributes to creating a diverse array of Latine professionals who can enact meaningful change in their communities and beyond.
Flor Herrera-Picasso
Flor is the oldest daughter of immigrants from Guanajuato, Mexico. She and her nine younger siblings were born and raised in Wilson, NC. Growing up in rural, eastern North Carolina in the nineties and early 2000’s was very difficult for her. Not having a safe space to nurture her bicultural identity forced Flor to assimilate and dilute her authentic self. She was determined to “get out” of Wilson in order to be successful and therefore knew that her only ticket out was going to college. Her secret dream was to become a fashion designer but feared that that dream was too unrealistic. She pursued a “safe” career and has a Bachelors in Business Administration from NC State University. The job market after she graduated was too gray and too corporate so she decided to pursue her Masters in Fashion and Textile Design, also from NCSU. In 2016, she moved to NYC and worked in the fashion industry for four years. She worked for luxury designers, NAEEM KHAN and Pamella Roland. One of her designs was featured on the television show, Schitt’s Creek, on an episode called “The Dress”. Flor eventually decided she would start her own brand called “Flor Morena” but the year 2020 had other plans. The pandemic brought her back home and she was overcome by the social climate around her. The 2020 elections were in full swing, the world was at a standstill because of the pandemic, and the BLM movement further heightened the sense of urgency to do something. Even though she didn’t think she was the best person for the job, she asked her sister, Elizabeth, if she would start a nonprofit organization along her side, and she said yes. Casa Azul de Wilson is their love letter to their hometown and to their younger selves. It is the first and only Latinx led and Latinx serving organization in Wilson, NC.
Herrison Chicas
I am an organizational behavior scientist who explores the psychological experiences and interpersonal dynamics of marginalized employees at work. I do this by employing various methodologies across three main research streams: 1) diversity & immigration, 2) narrative identity, and 3) intergenerational behavior.
I am a first-generation Latinx college student. I am the son of Salvadoran immigrants who taught me perseverance, and the beneficiary of mentors, counselors, and coaches who believed in me, especially when I did not.
For this reason, I strive to create community and empowerment as a member of the PhD Project, an Hermano of La Unidad Latina, Lambda Upsilon Lambda Fraternity, Inc., and an advisor to numerous equity initiatives.
I am a storyteller. Prior to attending graduate school, I traveled the country performing spoken words. More than a therapeutic art form, storytelling was, and continues to be, a vehicle to transmit empathy and knowledge.
I am an idealist with a daily goal to leverage my lived experience, my quantitative training, and my storytelling skill to create a more peaceful and equitable world.
Session Presenters & Speakers
Click on the names after the headshots to learn more about each of our presenters!
Amy Munekata
She/Her/Ella
Amy Munekata earned degrees in Hispanic Linguistics and Speech-Language Pathology at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She has worked as a speech therapist for 6 years with clients across the lifespan and treats bilingually in English and Spanish. She strives to center DEI initiatives in her work and has increased access to therapy for Spanish-speaking clients
Bryan Mejia
He/Him/Él
Bryan Mejia serves as the Assistant Programs Manager at LatinxEd. He graduated UNC Chapel Hill in 2021 with a degree in Psychology and Creative Nonfiction Writing. After graduating, he became a Tech and Media Fellow for Poder NC Action in order to connect trauma-informed design principles to digital content for civic campaigns. He also dedicates himself to advocating for student mental health resources and experiences alongside Pupusas 4 Education. Many of these experiences stem from his love of storytelling in its many forms and the responsibility to share those stories. His dreams and pursuit of higher education were only made possible by the trust, support and stories from his family and community. Now he is working to empower students from similar backgrounds to seek enrichment and strive for all the opportunities historically held back from them so they can continue to dream and create their own journeys. He is excited to be joining a team centering the strength of our community as a pathway to success.
Celina Ocampo
She/Her/Ella
Sophomore at UNC-Chapel Hill, majoring in Political Science and Public Policy. She is a student ambassador at the Carolina Latinx Center and involved in SiembraNC, focusing on fighting rights for our community in North Carolina and the U.S.
Daniel Santana-Garcia
He/Him/Él
My name is Daniel Santana-Garcia! I’m currently a senior majoring in Statistics with a minor in Data Science. This year, I serve as the founder and president of Latinos in Tech. Prior to this year, I had served on the Mi Pueblo executive board for two years. After graduating, I plan to work in data analytics.
Edith Nieves López
She/Her/Ella
Community Pediatrician with over a decade of experience working with Latine immigrant population in a variety of settings. Special interests include health equity, social justice, mental health and decolonizing medicine.
Elsa Landeros
She/Her/Ella
My name is Elsa Landeros! I am currently a senior majoring in Economics and minoring in Spanish for the Business Professions & Education. I have had various roles in Mi Pueblo, this year I am one of the Co-Presidentes alongside Bryan Sorto. My sophomore year, I became a McNair scholar which introduced me to research. After graduating, I plan on obtaining my Ph.D. in Higher Education Equity and Policy! I hope to give back to the Latinx community and pave the way for Latines in Higher Ed.
Erick Diaz
He/Him/Él
Erick Diaz is the Founder of Elevate and has successfully helped first-gen students apply to competitive grad school programs and fellowships for several years. A first-gen college student from San Diego, CA, Erick built his professional background in affordable housing development — working in affordable housing development and finance, and serving on education and neighborhood planning boards. His passion for empowering other first-gen students was sparked by his own experiences in graduate programs and fellowships serving underrepresented students. Erick holds a Master in Public Policy and a Master in Urban Planning from Harvard University, and is a graduate of the University of San Diego with a BA in International Relations.
Esther Mateo-Orr
She/Her/Ella
Esther Mateo Orr grew up in a small milltown in Massachusetts and experienced a tight-knit community with educators who advocated for all students and provided challenging instruction. She received a BA in American Studies from Pine Manor College in Chestnut Hill, MA, and pursued a Master Of Science in Elementary Education, from Alfred University, Alfred, NY.
Esther desires similar outcomes for all underserved students, and believes a supportive school community free of oppressive barriers to learning is the catalyst to better outcomes for Black and brown students. She taught in Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools for 16.5 years and in recent years has worked as a Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Specialist for the very same district.
As a life-long educator, Ms. Mateo-Orr is passionate about, and dedicated to equalizing the playing field for our most underserved, and marginalized populations.
Evan Ali-McClory
He/Him/Él
Evan Ali-McClory (he/him/él) has worked as a Client Relations Coordinator at Emerge Pediatric Therapy for the past 2 years. He graduated from the University of Florida with bachelor’s degrees in Exercise Physiology and Cognitive/ Behavioral Neuroscience. He has brought positive change to his community through direct action, activism, and organization as he looks to help others do the same.
Félix Chinea
He/Him/Él
Dr. Félix Manuel Chinea is a Puerto Rican military brat raised in the South and currently growing roots in Durham, North Carolina with his amazing wife, Raha, and lovable dog, Âbi (aw-bee), which means blue in Farsi. He is a graduate of Duke University School of Medicine with experience in health disparities and health equity research. Through this work, he highlighted the need for disaggregated data within the Latine community to address disparities in prostate cancer outcomes. He is currently the Head of Health Equity & Inclusion Strategy at Doximity where he applies an equity-centered, inclusion lens to impact people, practices, and products.
Hannah Ford
She/Her/Ella
Hannah is a Texas native and proud alum of the University of Houston, where she earned her Bachelor’s degree in Biology, and New York University, where she earned her Master’s degree in Higher Education and Student Affairs. She is interested in higher education policy, specifically policy surrounding access, affirmative action, and undocumented students. Currently, she serves as the Program Coordinator for Peer Mentoring at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill.
J. Israel Balderas
He/Him/Él
J. Israel Balderas is an Emmy Award-winning broadcast journalist-turned journalism educator. He’s also an attorney who has provided pro bono support focused on First Amendment protection for newsgathering. As a tenured-track assistant professor of journalism, who predominately teaches Media Law and Ethics, his teaching and research agenda focuses on government regulation of expression and newsgathering.
Javier Carranza
He/Him/Él
Javier is an elementary school librarian at Murphey Traditional Academy in Greensboro, NC and the future school librarian at Foust Elementary School, a new gaming and robotics school also in Greensboro. He is an alumnus of UNC Pembroke receiving his Bachelor’s in Elementary Education and a future alumni of UNC Greensboro, hoping to complete his Masters in Library and Information Science in May. He has been working in Education for 8 years in both the classroom and library. In his spare time he enjoys reading children’s stories, visiting theme parks, and spending time with his dog and cat.
Javier Morales
He/Him/Él
Javier Morales, a 21-year-old Computer Science major with a concentration in Software Engineering and a minor in Cybersecurity, champions diversity and excellence in STEM. As the Founder and President of “Futuros en STEM” and the President of the Hispanic Latinx Student Union, Javier is committed to positive change through technology. Recognized as an Louis Stokes Alliances for Minority Participation (LSAMP) scholar, he has conducted impactful research under the National Science Foundation, embodying his dedication to advancing the fields of software engineering and artificial intelligence. With a vision for pushing the boundaries of knowledge, Javier Morales serves as an inspiration for those aspiring to make a lasting impact in the world of technology.
Jocelyn Loyola-Lonjinos
She/Her/Ella
Jocelyn Loyola (she/her)- Sophomore at UNC-Chapel Hill, majoring in psychology along with a minor in Spanish for the Health Professions. She is a part of LINC, which aims to bridge the gap between the local community and the immigrant population.
Josmell Pérez
He/Him/Él
Josmell Pérez was born in Lima, Peru and moved at the age of 5 with his family to Northern New Jersey. He graduated from Muhlenberg College with a degree in Psychology and Spanish and earned his graduate degree from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill’s School of Education. He was involved in the formation of the Carolina Latina/o Collaborative and now serves as the Center’s director. Prior to coming to Carolina in 2007 he worked as Assistant Director of Admissions and Multicultural Recruitment Director for Moravian College, where he led an initiative that resulted in the doubling of multicultural student enrollment. He also served as an Admissions Counselor at Ohio University in Athens, where his territory was the northwest part of the state.
Josue Jimenez
He/Him/Él
Josue Jimenez – Josue Jimenez is the Assistant Director of Admissions and Diversity Recruitment Coordinator at Duke Law. He also serves on Duke Law’s DEI committee. Josue is originally from East Los Angeles, California, and obtained his BA from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 2013. After undergrad, he worked in Grand Rapids, Michigan. In 2014, Josue returned to North Carolina to attend Campbell University School of Law and graduated in 2017. After graduating, Josue served as the Jerry M. Wallace Public Service Fellow at Campbell Law until October 2018, when he became a staff attorney for Legal Aid of North Carolina. After some time at Legal Aid, Josue joined the North Carolina Department of Public Safety as an Assistant General Counsel. Prior to joining Duke, Josue returned to Campbell Law as the Assistant Director of Admissions. While at Campbell, he also served as the advisor for their Hispanic Law Student Association. Outside of work, Josue serves as part of the executive board for the Wake County Bar Association’s Young Lawyers Division and is also the co-founder of the Latine Law School Admissions Professionals Network (LLSAPN).
Liliana Madrid
She/Her/Ella
Liliana Madrid is a first-generation Salvadorian American from Compton, California. She has spent most of her professional career on the East Coast working in student affairs doing diversity equity and inclusion work. She has primarily worked with historically underrepresented students providing support, advocacy, outreach, leadership development, and cultural programming. Her drive comes from a personal passion for social justice and advocacy work. Throughout her career, Liliana has gained valuable hands-on experience and training in diversity issues, community outreach, and organizing. In addition to her experience in higher education, she also worked as a program specialist for volunteer engagement for AARP-Connecticut and AARP-California, where she planned outreach and diversity events. Liliana is a graduate of Trinity College and received her Masters in Higher Education Administration from Bay Path University.
Lorena Muñoz-Holladay
She/Her/Ella
Lorena Muñoz-Holladay born and raised in Santiago, Chile. Her parents were very poor but always supported her in her desire to pursue a higher education. They also instilled in her the idea of hard work, saving no matter what for a rainy day and never buy anything with debt. After she graduated from the prestigious Catholic University of Chile with her bachelor’s degree in Business, Administration and Economics, Lorena decided to go to London to study English. A year after returning to Chile, she got a scholarship from the Rotary International Foundation to come to the United States, where she met who would become her husband. In 1999 her fiancé left everything to go to Chile where they got married. During the Asian Crisis was difficult to find a good job, so they both decided to move to the US where their new adventure started. She started studying English again and found her first job as a receptionist, and after that she worked as a Communication Specialist for a nonprofit. Then Lorena started a very successful career as a banker which ended to her surprise when her job was terminated due to a merger right before the pandemic started. At this point she had recently found out about the FIRE movement and both she and her husband started cutting expenses and learning how to live in one salary and also started investing in Real Estate. 2020 was a challenging year, but ended up with many projects, a part time job as a Community Health Worker and several volunteer endeavors. On the day of her 21st anniversary of arriving in the US (02/13/2021) she celebrated it with the launching of her podcast about personal finances in Spanish called De Peso a Peso. She is an Accredited Financial Counselor (AFC ®) and the founder of Pilar Financiero.
Mariana Meza
She/Her/Ella
Mariana Meza (she/her)- Sophomore at Duke University. She is a part of the Mi Gente e-board, La Casa Representative for Student Leadership, and the Involvement Space Advisory Committee. She is an advocate for her community and dedicated to building spaces for Latinx at her university and beyond.
Maricela Bonilla Gutierrez
She/Her/Ella
Community Health Worker at NC FIELD
Matt Blomberg
He/Him/Él
Matthew Blomberg is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Journalism at Elon University. His research is centered on the fight against misinformation and disinformation and on preserving the health and veracity of our online media environment, especially for marginalized and vulnerable populations. He comes from a background and career in journalism, strategic communications, and filmmaking. He studied Radio-Television-Film as an undergraduate at the University of Texas at Austin and earned a master’s degree in Journalism and Mass Communications from Kansas State University. He holds a doctoral degree in Journalism and Mass Communications and a graduate certificate in Film and Media Studies from the University of Kansas. Having worked in news stations in Austin, Texas and in Topeka, Kansas, he enjoys the challenge and excitement of a newsroom. In addition to the news industry, he has done public relations and marketing work throughout Kansas, including serving as a communications director for a school district and as a public relations and marketing official for Kansas State University. He has also produced a number of freelance video projects and documentaries.
Mirella Cisneros Perez
She/Her/Ella
Mirella Cisneros Perez immigrated to the United States from Mexico and grew up in Snow Hill, NC. Her focus in working with Latinx families stems from her personal experiences growing undocumented, attending the public school system, and working as a teacher in Durham Public Schools. Mirella attended Elon University as an Odyssey Scholar and Teaching Fellow. At Elon, she majored in Middle Grades Education with a concentration in Mathematics and minored in Poverty and Social Justice, and Environmental Education. During her time at Elon, she made it a priority to work with organizations that advocated for social justice and access to higher education. She had the opportunity to work with Student U, Elon Academy, and The Center for Race, Ethnicity, and Diversity Education. Her mission is to help create educational equity for Latinx families and students by providing resources for schools and educators that address the needs of this community. In her free time, Mirella enjoys cooking, spending time in nature, and doing Zumba.
Quinny Sanchez Lopez
She/Her/Ella
Formerly undocumented, raised in poverty, and with a long line of generational trauma, Quinny is passionate about improving the health and well-being of historically marginalized communities. Early in her career, she led direct interventions focused on community development, education, mental health, and immigration. After spending two and a half years managing community engagement for a health tech start-up, Quinny is now dedicated to overseeing collaborations that lead to the development of inclusive and impactful digital health interventions. Quinny is an appointed member of North Carolina’s Andrea Harris Equity Task Force and earned her MSW at UNC-Chapel Hill where she concentrated on Community, Management, and Policy Practice.
Ruy Manrique
He/Him/Él
Ruy Manrique is a PhD student at UNC’s Department of Sociology and a predoctoral trainee at the Carolina Population Center. He is also part of the team of graduate student consultants for the Odum Institute Stats Desk. Ruy has ample experience as an applied statistician and data analyst.
Steven Alonso-Echegaray
He/Him/Él
Steven Alonso (he/him) – Sophomore at UNC-Chapel Hill, majoring in Biology with a minoring in Spanish for the Health Professions. He is a part of the Mi Pueblo e-board and heavily involved in many Latinx organizations, in an effort in increase the presence the Latinx culture on campus.
William Vizuete
He/Him/Él
Tackling the problem of air pollution mortality is the public health issue that motivates my research. I work on increasing our understanding of how the atmosphere changes the formation of air pollution, and how it impacts our health. Through this research I have increased our scientific knowledge and produced new insights with air quality computer simulations and through collecting data in the field and in the laboratory.
x. ramos-lara
She/They
x. ramos-lara (she/they) is a doctoral student in english and comparative literature at unc-chapel hill. her research focuses on queer latinx poetics and the subjectivity of minoritization through language, culture, and social systems. outside of the academy, x. enjoys writing poetry about her xicana queerness.
Poster Presenters
Click on the names below to learn more about what each poster will be about!
Andy Alexander Ontiveros-Olivas
Poster Title: American-Mexican Outreach Federation (AMOF): A Commitment to Mexico’s Marginalized Communities
Citlalli Rendon Guzman
Poster Title: Exploring Supportive Recruitment and Access Strategies: The Impact of Test-Optional Policies on Undocumented Students’ Interest, Access, and Enrollment in Highly Selective Institutions
Elsa Fernanda Landeros
Poster Title: The Educational and Economic Effects of Upward Bound Participation for Low-Income, First-generation Students
Jeanne Michelle Gil Muñoz
Poster Title: Interrogating the Developmental Consequences of Histone H3 Depletion
Josue Moises Hernandez Cardona
Poster Title: Spectral Characterization of CDOM from the Lower cape fear river and estuary
Julian Bailon
Poster Title: Defining a Role for Mitochondrial Injury due to MEK Inhibition in Cardiomyocytes
Santiago Bejarano Hernandez
Poster Title: Assessing the Medical Needs of Newly Arrived Asylum Seekers: Development of a Qualtrics survey prototype for a shelter near the Mexico – United States border.
Yuliana Ganan
Poster Title: The Effect of Political Barriers and Anti-Immigrant Attitudes on Latinx Health: A Literature Review