Sylvia Garcia

In addition to appointing several new board members, the National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials (NALEO) appointed Sylvia Garcia to serve as the new NALEO President. A former board member herself, Garcia was unanimously elected on June 28th, 2009 at the organization’s Board of Directors meeting in Los Angeles.

“I am honored that my colleagues have entrusted me with the opportunity to lead this organization during a historic time,” said president Garcia of her appointment, “I look forward to working with our members across the country to forge a stronger future for our nation and communities.”

President Garcia’s duties will include overseeing and leading the organization, which represents more than 6,000 Latino appointed and elected officials across the country. As NALEO’s seventh president, she is the first Texan and the second Latina in NALEO history to assume the position of president.

Congresswoman Lucille
Roybal-Allard

The National Council for Community Behavioral Healthcare recently awarded Congresswoman Lucille Roybal-Allard (CA-34) with its Legislator of the Year Award in recognition of her support for people with mental illnesses and addiction disorders. “Congresswoman Roybal-Allard has worked tirelessly to raise awareness of the critical need for better coverage for mental health and addiction treatments in the United States,” said Linda Rosenberg, president and CEO of the National Council. A survey recently conducted by the Council revealed a 20 percent surge in demand for services from community mental health and addiction treatment organizations nationwide.

Congresswoman Roybal-Allard’s efforts on behalf of persons with mental illnesses include introducing the Guidance, Understanding, and Information for Dual Eligibles (GUIDE) Act which calls for reform in certain prescription drug programs. She has also advocated for legislation which coordinates federal programming and initiatives to combat underage drinking.

Cecilia Fajardo-Hill

Cecilia Fajardo-Hill has been appointed vice president of curatorial affairs and chief curator of the Museum of Latin American Art’s (MOLAA). Fajardo-Hill will join MOLAA president and CEO Richard P. Townsend in reshaping the institution. She will assume her new role on August 17, 2009, and will be largely responsible for organizing the vibrant Latin American art exhibits featured at MOLAA, located in Long Beach, California.

“I look forward to facilitating the participation of Latin American artists in the international contemporary arts arena,” said Fajardo-Hill of her new position. “I believe that it is time to dispel the stereotypes that have been associated with Latin American art and culture and reinforce its role within the global community.”

Fajardo’s background includes extensive work organizing a range of multidisciplinary art collections, ranging from photography and contemporary art to video and abstract geometric art. She is a graduate of the University of Essex in England, having earned a PhD in Art History with a specialization in contemporary Latin American Art.

Camelia Valdes

Camelia Valdes was recently sworn in as County Prosecutor of Passaic County, New Jersey. Valdes represents not only New Jersey’s first Latina County Prosecutor, but also the first Dominican American to head a Prosecutor’s office in U.S. history. Officially nominated to the position by New Jersey Governor Jon S. Corzine this past March and confirmed by the New Jersey State Senate in June, Valdes’ appointment has been praised by multiple organizations at the state and national level.

“We are very proud of Camelia Valdes for her achievement,” said Nestor Montilla, president of the Dominican American National Roundtable (DANR), a non-profit Washington, DC-based organization which advocates on behalf of over one million Dominican Americans. “We wish her success as the chief law enforcement official in Passaic County.”

Born in the Bronx, New York and raised in Newark, New Jersey, Valdes earned undergraduate degrees in both sociology and criminal justice from Seton Hall University in 1993. A 1996 Rutgers Law School graduate, she also received her LL.M. in Trial Advocacy from Temple University in 2001. She has served as the Assistant Counsel in the New Jersey Governor’s Counsel’s Office, as Assistant U.S. Attorney in the Newark, New Jersey offices, and as the former President of New Jersey’s Hispanic Bar Association.