Latino(a) Heritage Month Committee
Michael Barrientos
Civil Engineering/Structural Engineering SEAS 2012
Treasurer of LHM
I decided to join LHM because I saw it as a great opportunity to help this organization that has been
growing in influence across campus since my freshman year. The treasurer position was my way of contributing
to this organization because in order to have more fruitful and grander events a strict management
of the budget is necessary. Also the current board and I have worked together on various occasions in
the past and the communication amongst us is very solid.
My all time favorite thing to do is dance to relieve stress and on other occasions play some Dominoes
with my friends while listening to music.
Ana Vinueza
Columbia College 2014
Political Science and Anthropology
Fashion Show Co-Chair
I decided to join LHM because I saw it as a great opportunity to meet my fellow latino peers while working on a
campus-wide and month-long event. Additionally, I love event planning and fashion, so the position of fashion show
co-chair was perfect.
Interesting fact: I attended a program with Teen Vogue for three years, and was admitted a fourth year but chose to
decline due to LHM conflicts. LHMLOVE.
Lucelys Popoter
Psychology CC 2014
LHM Showcase - Fashion Show Co-Chair
I decided to join LHM because I was extremely impressed when I attended the LHM
events during my first year that I wanted to become involved. Being the fashion show
co-chair I get to embrace and share my love for fashion and being Latina.
Emmanuel Hiram Arnaud
Columbia College 2013, History and Political Science
Educational Chair
Apart from being extremely passionate for the success and advancement of the Latino community,
my joy for the proliferation of our culture is something that I hold dear to my heart as well.
I wanted to be a part of the Latino Heritage Month committee in order to be involved with both the
sharing of our culture and the further intellectual advancement of our people. As Educational chair,
my vision was to take a topic that we often tackle from an inadequate angle and reconfigure the way we
thought of it. It is our duty and responsibility to face our challenges head on and destroy the institutional
oppression that has been placed upon many disadvantaged groups including the Latino population. The education
of our people is at the heart of this oppression. Let us break these barriers, follow those who have come before
us, pave the way for those who travel with us, and be a guiding light to those who will come after us.
Through strength there is power to succeed. That is the focus of this year's Latino Heritage Month and
I am proud to be a part of it.
Melissa Vargas
Secretary
Columbia College 2013
Department of Psychology
I decided to join the 2011 LHM Committee because I wanted to become more involved
with the Latino community on the Columbia campus. Also I see this as an opportunity
to unite all the other Latino organizations and gear towards having a unified influential
presence within the community throughout this month. As our slogan for this year
(breaking barriers and creating pathways) insinuates, I want to be part of the movement
of building bridges between various organizations and use those bridges to provide avenues
for students on this campus to see our Latino organizations and see the type of work that we do.
Interesting Fact: I have been zip lining through the jungles of Mexico.
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