The sixth annual celebration of America’s Hispanic Heritage — the 2021 AL DÍA Archetypes event — will see 10 outstanding Hispanic professionals be honored with the 2021 Ambassador Manuel Torres Award.

The honorees will be distinguished across 10 categories. They are: public service, non-profit, education, corporate, entrepreneurship, sports, performing arts, philanthropy, media and health.

This year, the honoree in the corporate category will be Yvette Peña, Vice President of Hispanic/Latino Audience Strategy in the Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion at AARP. She has been with AARP since 2016. 

In her role at AARP, she serves as the national voice for AARP’s engagement with Latino communities through partnerships with multicultural organizations with the purpose of driving AARP’s social impact. 

In addition, she is responsible for leading the strategic development of AARP’s brand campaigns through innovative messaging aimed at engaging the 50-plus age population. 

Peña has over 20 years of experience specializing in multicultural and general audience initiatives.

Prior to AARP, she became the first Director of Multicultural Marketing at Sports Authority, where she built and led the company’s U.S. Multicultural strategy. She was also previously the first Director of Multicultural Marketing at Walgreens, where she developed the company’s strategy for Shopper Marketing programs for Multicultural audiences. 

Other prior roles included Account Director at the Bravo Group, the Hispanic division of Young & Rubicam, Manager of Multicultural Marketing for Sears, Roebuck and Co., Brand Manager for Craftsman tools and Kenmore appliances. 

In addition to that, Peña is a board member, and Vice Chair of the Friends of the National Museum of the American Latino.

Peña is a bilingual Afro-Latina with Dominican roots, originally from New York. She has a Bachelor of Business Administration from Baruch College and resides in both Washington, D.C. and Chicago. 

During Hispanic Heritage Month in September, Peña will be honored as the 2021 AL DÍA Archetype: Ambassador Manuel Torres Award in the category of corporate. She will join Damian Rivera, Nathalie Rayes, Noe Ortega, Alejandro Bedoya and Pedro Ramos as six of 10 honorees at this year’s event. 

The remaining honorees will be announced in the coming days ahead. 

The 2021 AL DÍA Archetype Hispanic Heritage Gala & Awards Ceremony is set for Friday, Sept. 24, 2021 at the Union League of Philadelphia. To reserve your seat at the premier celebration of America's Hispanic Heritage, click here.