The National Association for Community Asset Builders (NALCAB) has announced the names of the 2023 cohort for the Pete Garcia Community Economic Development Fellowship program, marking 13 years of training up and coming Latino nonprofit leaders.

The Fellowship comprises a nine-month training program that teaches Latino leaders how to build the practical, personal, and professional skills needed to become a leader in the community economic development field.

These leaders must already have three years of experience in the professional field and minimum one year working with their chosen nonprofit organization.

The program runs from January to November, granting Fellows six virtual sessions, four in-person sessions, three Fellowship trainings, and the 2023 NALCAB National Conference.

The NALCAB National Conference is a congregation of Latino-serving community development professionals from across the country so they can share their experiences, best practices, provide networking opportunities, and promote Latino economic advancement and social justice together.

Additionally, each Fellow is required to create a Community Development Leadership Project, requiring work outside of the sessions.

As of their 2022 cohort, the NALCAB Pete Garcia Fellowship has graduated 169 of its program participants, representing 110 unique nonprofit organizations across approximately 25 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico.

The list of the 2023 cohort is as follows:

• Andrea Valdez-Rocha of El Pajaro CDC Watsonville, CA 
• Ashley Gomez of BakerRipley Houston, TX 
• Chalise Fiol Hacienda of CDC Portland, OR 
• Diane Velez of Active San Gabriel Valley El Monte, CA 
• Fabian Cisneros of Northwest Side CDC Chicago, IL 
• Jessica Herrera of Houston Christian University Houston, TX 
• Juliana Esguerra of Hispanic Unity of Florida Hollywood, FL 
• Karina Guzman of Inclusive Action for the City Los Angeles, CA 
• Karla Posada of Working Solutions CDFI San Francisco, CA 
• Leonardo Lopez of Montbello Organizing Committee Denver, CO 
• Liza Rivera of California Association for Micro Enterprise Opportunity (CAMEO) San Francisco, CA 
• Melissa Rodriguez of Hispanic Interest Coalition of Alabama Birmingham, AL 
• Nayeli Pelayo of National Community Reinvestment Coalition Washington DC 
• Paola Di Nubila of Centro Para Emprendedores, Inc. San Juan, PR 
• Patrisia Gutierrez of East LA Community Corporation Los Angeles, CA 
• Selena Duvivier of National Housing Trust Washington, DC 
• Sofia Darsin of Calderale Latino Economic Development Center Washington, DC 
• Tomas Yan of Conexion Americas Nashville, TN

More information about the Fellowship can be found here.