September 21, 2009

Latino Network Announces New Executive Director

On  Monday (9/21) the Latino Network board of directors announced the appointment of Carmen Caballero Rubio to the position of executive director.  The Latino Network, established in 1996, is a Portland nonprofit working to promote educational achievement, support leadership and community development among Latinos.  

"Carmen brings a commitment to social justice and a long career in the development of partnerships between public entities and community organizations," said Martin Gonzalez, board chair and Portland Public Schools board member.  "We look forward to working with Carmen to improve the lives of our students and families."  

“I am very excited to work with Carmen  to address  needs in the Latino community, especially the achievement gap in education,"  said Gale Castillo, Hispanic Metropolitan Chamber president. 

Rubio recently served as a senior policy advisor to Portland Commissioner Nick Fish on homelessness, public safety and communications. Prior to joining Fish’s office, she served as a policy advisor to former Multnomah County Commissioner Serena Cruz and former Portland Mayor Tom Potter, where she worked on civil rights issues and managed projects such as the creation of the Portland Office of Human Relations and a hiring site for Portland day laborers. 

"Carmen’s departure is a big loss to my office and to City Hall, where she has served with distinction for nearly five years," said Commissioner Fish. "However, her dynamic leadership is a perfect fit for the Latino Network."  

Rubio will start her new position in mid-October. She is a graduate of the University of Oregon and attended the University of Washington Graduate School of Communications.. She is a current fellow of the American Leadership Forum of Oregon and the Hispanic Chamber Leadership Program. She serves on the boards of Emerge Oregon, Miracle Theater Group and JustPortland.

September 21, 2009

Carmen Caballero Rubio es la Nueva Directora Executiva del Latino Network

Como parte de las celebraciones del mes de la herencia hispana la mesa directiva del Latino Network anunció hoy el nombramiento de Carmen Caballero Rubio como su nueva directora executiva.  Latino Network es una organización comunitaria sin fines de lucro que promueve el liderazgo y organización comunitaria desde 1996 

"Carmen es una persona con una gran experiencia en el sector público y una dedicación indiscutible de trabajar para mejorar la situación de la comunidad latina,” declaró Martín González, presidente de la mesa directiva de Latino Network, y miembro de la mesa directiva del distrito escolar de Portland.  "En estos tiempos de crisis económica cobra más importancia la promoción de alianzas que mejoren la situación económica y educacional de nuestra gente.  Me alegro dar a conocer que ahora contamos con Carmen para continuar nuestros esfuerzos de mejorar las condiciones de vida de nuestras familias y estudiantes. “ 

En estos momentos Carmen trabaja como asesora política del Comisionado de la Ciudad de Portland Nick Fish.  Anteriormente ocupó el cargo de directora en comunicación para asuntos comunitarios con el alcalde Tom Potter.  También trabajo con la comisionada del condado de Multnomah Serena Cruz

Caballero Rubio iniciará sus labores como Directora Executiva para el Latino Network a mediados de octubre. “Estoy muy entusiasmada y llena de esperanza de poder trabajar en la comunidad a la par de un personal muy dedicado y los miembros de la mesa directiva que han demostrado un gran compromiso en la comunidad latina,” declaró Caballero Rubio al ser notificada por Latino Network.

March 21, 2008

A Conversation With the Mayor

On Friday, March 21, Mayor Potter met with members of the Latino community at the Baltazar Ortiz Center in Cully (6736 NE Killingsworth). The meetings were convened by Latino Network and hosted by Hacienda CDC. Instead of the traditional format featuring one-on-one meetings, Latino Network requested a community based meeting format - with participants discussing their concerns with Mayor Potter as a group.

The meeting began with three skits put on by some of the participants to communicate the challenges Latinos experience in the Cully neighborhood:

The opening play was about feelings of insecurity in Cully's Latino community. When there is violence in the community, some of the neighborhood residents feel afraid to call the police because the police might bring Federal Immigration enforcement officers with them to deport their friends and neighbors. They are also afraid to call the police about gang activity for the possibility that the gangs will retaliate.

The second skit was about the condition of the streets in the neighborhood. They feel streets are unsafe, particularly for children, because there are no sidewalks. The sides of the roads are dirty and strewn with litter, and the students are chastised by their teachers and teased by other kids for having dirty shoes after walking on the side of the road. The play brought up the need for more school buses and pedestrian crossings in the neighborhood.

The third play was about the fear mothers have for their children. They are afraid of the crime, the gangs, and the dirtiness of the streets in the community. They feel there is a lot of prostitution in the area, because there are few families and many single men. If the mothers call the police on gang activity, the gang members are already gone by the time the police arrive.

Participants discussed what they have been doing to improve the quality of life in the community: trainings to call 911, economic development and legal trainings. They presented their vision of the community to Mayor Potter: a library branch, more doctors and medicine, quality childcare, life without fear of gangs, fences without graffiti, cleaner streets, and a united front of neighbors to come together on community issues.

Mayor Potter expressed his appreciation for the skits and discussed the issues that they broached with the community vision. Some of the issues that emerged from that discussion: Spanish language capability and cultural competency of Portland police officers. The community felt that there are not enough Spanish-speaking officers, or enough Latino officers, who they feel comfortable working with or communicating with. The Mayor responded that it has been difficult to recruit in the Latino community, and asked that organizations like Latino Network help police recruiters find prospective officers.

The Mayor also discussed the upcoming police exchange program he plans to initiate with Portland's sister city, Guadalajara, Mexico. The Mayor also assured the community that the police, by State law, are not allowed to cooperate with Federal Immigration enforcement and the Mayor pledged not to allow Portland police to work with Immigration enforcement in any capacity.

Youth programming.
There has been work with Multnomah County programs and El Programa Hispano, but there simply isn't enough - even though the families have a lot of motivation. Residents are afraid of the gang problem escalating this summer. Mayor Potter also discussed the youth activities taking place for Spring Break (more information available here).

Clean and safe streets in Cully.
The Mayor talked about the history of Cully, and that sidewalks were not required in the neighborhood before Cully was annexed by the City in the 1980s. There was money set aside for a project called Cully Green Streets at one time, and Mayor Potter encouraged the community to lobby candidates for City Hall to commit to funding the Green Streets project.

Childcare.
Women in the Latino community would like to be more actively involved, but the lack of quality, available childcare is a barrier. Mayor Potter responded that the City does not have childcare programs, but that he would ask his staff to research whether other programs could connect with families in the Cully neighborhood.

Bus service to schools.
Residents complained that Portland Public Schools took away bus service to Rigler after re-districting. The Mayor discussed a project he is working on to get free TriMet passes to youth, which would be able to take them to school.

Members of the community present thanked Mayor Potter for visiting him. The evening was concluded with music and food provided by the participants.