HISPA is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to developing the educational pipeline and creating a workforce of highly skilled leaders to contribute to America’s economic future.
HISPA allows predominantly low-income students to meet and hear from college-educated role models in high-skill professions who introduce college and career opportunities and increase student belief in their ability to pursue these opportunities. By uniting students with role models who reflect their backgrounds and experiences, HISPA’s programs show students that they, too, can overcome obstacles and achieve success. In so doing, HISPA builds a diverse pipeline in higher education and high-skill careers, supporting educational and economic equality for all:
Students in grades 6-8 participate in HISPA’s Role Model Program, where professionals visit school classrooms to share their personal, academic, and professional journeys. These stories highlight pathways to college, introduce career opportunities students were unaware of, and impart the inspiration and information to pursue these opportunities.
Students in grade 9 participate in HISPA’s Ready, Set, GOals! Ready, Set, GOals! is a specialized Role Model Program where HISPA Role Models guide high school students through workshops focused on planning education and career paths aligned to students' personal goals. Each of the six scaffolded workshops focuses on a specific topic and are divided into four segments in which students hear from HISPA Role Models; engage in guided self-reflection; and learn what they can do now, in college, and beyond to achieve specific goals. Ready, Set, GOals! demonstrates the importance of planning and goal-setting and helps students create action plans to practice these skills in their own lives.
With knowledge of a variety of college and career options, students in grades 6-9 participate in HISPA’s experiential educational events that complement their in-school HISPA learning and provide direct exposure to concrete college and career options:
HISPA Youth Conferences, themed “Take Action! Achieve Your Dreams,” get students out of their classrooms and onto a local university campus for the first time. These trips excite students about college life, emphasize the importance of high school to college success, and explore college majors through hands-on activities.
HISPA Corporate Visits, themed Imagine Days, bring students to company headquarters, exposing students to local businesses and careers through employee-led tours and activities.
HISPA’s Leaders in College program supports predominantly first-generation college students’ academic success and transition to the workforce. A mix of leadership development workshops and career panel discussions develop “hard” and “soft” skills, build professional networks, and connect students to internship and career opportunities.
HISPA’s programs are open to everyone, though HISPA primarily partners with schools in low-income communities. In our K-12 partner schools, 97% of students qualify for free/reduced price lunch. Approximately 85% of students identify as Hispanic, 9% as Black, 4% as White, and 2% as Asian. In college, HISPA primarily serves first-generation college students who qualify for programs like Upward Bound and the Educational Opportunity Fund, which provide assistance to students from educationally and economically disadvantaged backgrounds.
In 2024-25, based on over 4,000 instances of student feedback after participating in HISPA programming:
● 94% of the time, students learned things they didn’t know before about the Role Model’s job or career;
● 96% of the time, students found the Role Model’s story of how they achieved their goals inspiring;
● 95% of the time, the Role Model inspired students to work harder in school;
● 96% of the time, students felt encouraged to try harder to achieve their goals because of the Role Model’s story;
● 91% of the time, the Role Model increased students’ desire to attend college.
Students said:
‘‘One of the speakers is from my family's home country so she really inspired me to keep focusing on school because if she can do it then I can too.’’
“The Role Model did not grow up financially privileged which is something that resonated
with me as I have a similar experience growing up. Her experiences motivated me to achieve my goals like she did.”
‘‘She made me try to achieve my goals. This is because she struggled with single parents and not being able to pay for college, so this makes me think if she is successful and went through a lot so can I.’’
Leaders in College
HISPA began in 2008 as an effort to unite Latino role models with Latino middle-school students to encourage them to stay in school by demonstrating that they, too, can pursue and fulfill their academic and professional dreams. Launched in 2012, HISPA’s college programs were a logical continuation of our original vision, creating a pipeline of support to ensure students continue to have access to role models to deliver inspiration and build long-lasting skills needed for academic and workforce success.
The Leaders in College (formerly Latinos in College) program supports largely first-generation college students by fostering a sense of belonging, imparting skills key to success, encouraging college completion, and positioning students for success after graduation. It addresses the unique challenges faced by first-generation students, including access to resources, navigating higher education, and building networks and skills for academic and career advancement.
The Leaders in College program builds skills to successfully graduate and transition to the workforce. HISPA brings over 13 years of experience delivering culturally and linguistically relevant college support services. This work began in 2012, when HISPA began providing the New Jersey Governor’s Hispanic Fellows program with leadership development workshops to build professional networks and skills key to lifelong success. After three successful years of implementation—and with HISPA still actively running that program today—HISPA also established the Latinos in College program in 2015, piloting it for 20 students from NJIT’s Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers. The program aimed to build students’ self-confidence, leadership, and career ownership while equipping them with 21st-century skills, insights into demographic and workforce trends, current job opportunities, and access to professional networks through role models and volunteering. Since then, the program has evolved and grown: In 2024-25 alone, the present-day Leaders in College program served nearly 200 college students across multiple campuses in New Jersey, including Passaic County Community College, Mercer County Community College, Rider University and NJIT.
Our Leaders in College services today include:
1. Six to eight professional and leadership development workshops throughout the academic year, covering topics such as networking; academic and workplace skills (e.g., organization, time management); personal strengths (e.g., self-motivation, persistence, resilience); written communication and public speaking; social media etiquette; and resume and interview preparation. The series has also included culturally relevant topics appropriate to our audience—such as networking and relationship building with Latine professionals and navigating and leveraging Latine networks—that reflect students’ lived experiences and promote a sense of belonging. These workshops are designed to support college retention and completion while building the leadership and professional skills critical to long-term success in any field.
2. Expert guest speakers on special topics (e.g., financial management) and to enhance workshop content.
3. One career panel with diverse professionals from nearby companies who introduce and discuss various internship and career opportunities within a single company (e.g., Verizon), specialty (e.g., STEM), or field (e.g., pharma).
4. One HISPA Leadership Workshop. Each HISPA Leadership Workshop is hosted by a single partner (e.g., Amazon, AT&T, KPMG). Led by diverse professionals within that company, the day addresses systemic disparities while students hear from and network with organizational leaders, engage in interactive workshops and hands-on activities, and more.
Leaders in College students say: “Being a part of the program made me feel comfortable and honored to be a Hispanic woman pursuing her dreams…I am immensely grateful for the connections HISPA has given me. I have met professionals I never would have been able to meet and have been coached by the amazing Rod Colón. [This] program has contributed great work in the process of shaping my most professional self.”
5. Mentorship: Students engage in 1-on-1 professional coaching sessions and small group discussions with the program facilitator to monitor and individually support their progress, as well as build relationships with peers and professionals they meet through the program.
Leaders in College students say: “The program literally changed my life. It gave me a sense of worth and value that I didn’t know I had. [The mentors] have shown much enthusiasm for my growth and have contributed immensely to my professional journeys by coaching and being personally involved.”
6. Volunteerism and community engagement: HISPA provides opportunities for students to gain community service experience by acting as HISPA Role Models to youth in their communities. These opportunities develop students’ sense of self and strengthen public speaking skills.
In summary, HISPA programs empower students in low-income communities to explore college and professional pathways by connecting them with relatable role models who exemplify success through education, hard work, and perseverance.
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