Since September 15, Temple University has hosted a variety of events in celebration of Hispanic Heritage Month. 

With events ranging from arts and culture to law, politics and literature, a variety of panels, exhibitions and presentations and speeches have taken place — and will continue to take place — as part of the University’s effort to pay tribute to and honor the contributions of the Latino community across the school.

As part of this celebration of Hispanic culture and heritage, a first-time occurrence took place.

Temple’s Fox School of Business hosted its first-ever event in honor of Hispanic Heritage Month. 

The event was in partnership with the Fox & STHM DEI Council, The Center for Ethics, Diversity and Workplace Culture (CEDWC), and the Association of Latino Professionals for America (ALPFA).

Ron Anderson, Dean of the Fox School of Business, provided remarks at the event to share that he supports diversity, equity and inclusion because it allows everyone to be a part of the conversation.

“The reason I want everybody to be part of the conversation is because we end up making better decisions and we end up having an environment where everyone is welcome,” he said. 

Over the years, the Fox School has seen incremental improvements in the diversity of its student population, with about 7.5% of its students identified as Hispanic or Latino, according to Anderson. 

He added that the percentage has more than doubled from five years ago. 

A key person who has passionately advocated for more Latino student and faculty representation at the Fox Business School is Elvita Quiñones. 

Currently the President of ALPFA Philadelphia, she spent 15 years as part of Temple’s staff, with a keen eye toward diversity, equity, inclusion and representation.

As someone who has seen the value of diversity, equity and inclusion in business endeavors, she has dedicated her career to advocating for those values.

In addition, as she has built her network through ALPFA, she has also become that connector between the student and professional chapters of the organization. 

The event continued with Diego Luna-Rivera, President of Temple University’s ALPFA Chapter, introducing the special guest for the evening — Damian Rivera. 

Rivera is the CEO of ALPFA. As its national president since September 2018, he has helped lead the premiere Latino professional organization and continue its growth among its members, student chapters, and professional chapters across the country. 

Rivera took on the new role with ALPFA after 21 years with Accenture, most recently as its managing director.

Throughout his career, Rivera has displayed a passion for social entrepreneurship, the power of networking, and advocating for diversity in business.

During his presentation, Rivera spoke about a variety of topics, including his personal and professional journey, the value of the Latino community to U.S. society, why investing in Latinos is important in business, the principles he has followed throughout his life, and the future of Latino professionals in the business world. 

Stay tuned to read more about Rivera's words and remarks shared during his presentation. 

To see the full list of Temple’s remaining Hispanic Heritage Month events, click here.