VALHEN - Virginia Latino Higher Education Network

Dr. Manuel A. Pérez-Quiñones is Associate Dean in Residence and Director of the Office for Diversity Programs at the Graduate School, an Associate Professor in the Department of Computer Science, and a member of the Center for Human-Computer Interaction at Virginia Tech. Pérez-Quiñones holds a D. Sc. in Computer Science from The George Washington University. His research interests include human-computer interaction, personal information management, user interface software, digital government, and educational uses of computers.

Dr. Pérez-Quiñones is a member of the Coalition to Diversify Computing, where he co-directs the national program Collaborative Research Experience for Undergraduates in Computer Science and Engineering. He serves on the editorial board for the Journal on Educational Resources in Computing. For 2008-2010 has been included in the IEEE Computer Society Distinguished Visitor program. Dr. Pérez-Quiñones also serves as a founding member for the Virginia Latino Higher Education Network (VALHEN).

As the Vice President for Equity and Inclusion, Kevin McDonald serves as the executive level focal point for the promotion of equity, diversity and inclusion across the Virginia Tech community. The Office for Equity and Inclusion provides institutional guidance regarding the creation of a supportive university environment for Virginia Tech students, staff, and faculty that fosters full participation and cultivates inclusive excellence.

Prior to his new role, McDonald served as the Director of the Office for Equal Opportunity at Virginia Tech, where he provided and continues to provide vision and leadership to ensure equal access to employment and educational opportunities; the development, implementation and evaluation of equal opportunity and affirmative action policies, procedures and initiatives; the investigation and resolution of complaints of discrimination; and the resolution of university conflicts through the use of mediation services.

Prior to his arrival at Virginia Tech, McDonald served as the Associate Director for Compliance and Conflict Resolution in the Office for Institutional Equity at Johns Hopkins University. McDonald has also served as the Campus Compliance Officer for the Office of Human Relations at the University of Maryland, College Park; as a Dispute Administrator for Network Solutions Inc. in Herndon, Va.; and as a Disability Rights Investigator for the Civil Rights Division of the Disability Rights Section of the United States Department of Justice.

McDonald earned his bachelor’s degree from Andrews University and his Juris Doctor degree from The Ohio State University College of Law.

Dr. Maricel Quintana-Baker (VALHEN President) serves as Associate Director for Academic Affairs and Planning at the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia (SCHEV). She is responsible for coordinating Virginia’s Outstanding Faculty Awards, coordinates the Agency’s Statewide Strategic Plan, and conducts research on higher education policy. She is a member of the National Advisory Board for the Computing Alliance of Hispanic Serving Institutions and the Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities’ Higher Education Research Collective (H3ERC).

Dr. Quintana-Baker currently serves on the Virginia Council on the Status of Women and on the Executive Board of The Women’s Network, the state affiliate of the American Council on Education's Office of Women in Higher Education. She has also served for five years on the Virginia Latino Advisory Board and is a founding member of the Central Virginia Chapter of LULAC (League of Latin American Citizens). Dr. Quintana-Baker also serves as the founding President for the Virginia Latino Higher Education Network (VALHEN). She held an Oakridge Institute for Science and Education Post-Doctoral Fellowship at the National Science Foundation’s Division of Education and Human Resource Development. She holds a Ph.D. from American University, and is a graduate of the Management Development Program at the Harvard University Graduate School of Education and of Leadership Metro Richmond.

LULAC Virginia Councils #4611 and #4609 (http://www.lulac.org/va.html) advance the economic condition, educational attainment, political influence, health and civil rights of the Latino population of Virginia.

Mr. George Cushman, Vice President of Programs, is responsible for the development and execution of the fund's comprehensive set of programs. George works extensively with students, community partners, and sponsors in order to execute all Hispanic College Fund programs, which include the Hispanic Youth Symposia, Hispanic College Fund Scholarship Program, Latinos on Fast Track (LOFT), and Hispanic Young Professionals (HYP).

George has spoken on issues of Hispanic education and professional careers at conferences around the country and recently supported underserved populations as a peer review panelist for the U.S. Department of Energy's Office of Workforce Development for Teachers and Scientists. Prior to the joining the Hispanic College Fund, George was president of Quantum Resources Corporation, a $100 million national company based in Richmond, Virginia that provides recruiting services, job board management, and professional technical contract labor to hundreds of corporations across the country. George received his degree from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst in 1974.

Mr. Ray Plaza began his service at Virginia Tech in July 1998. He currently serves as the Special Projects Coordinator in Academic Support Services. He recently served as the Director of Diversity Initiatives within the Office for Equity and Inclusion, and as the Projects Specialist for Diversity Initiatives in the Office of Multicultural Affairs. Prior to his position within Multicultural Affairs, Ray served as a Complex Director within Residence Life for seven years.

Currently, he is a Caucus representative to the University Commission on Equal Opportunity and Diversity and he previously served as the Commission Chair for two years. He is also active in other circles as he is the Founder and past Chair of the Hispanic Caucus of Faculty/staff, and a member of the Multicultural Fellows.

Ray is currently working on his Doctorate at Virginia Tech. He is a graduate of the University of Florida with a BA (1994) in English and History and MA (1998) in Student Personnel. Born in Hialeah, Florida, his family is from the Cabo Rojo area in Puerto Rico.

Johanna Smith is currently an advisor in Career Services at Virginia Tech. She worked in a similar capacity at the University of Detroit Mercy prior to coming to Virginia Tech. She has spent the majority of her career in the automotive industry working in various engineering and supervisory roles. After nearly 10 years in the automotive industry, she changed career paths focusing on helping others in their career development. She obtained a Master of Arts in Counseling and has worked in career services assisting college students ever since, a role that she thoroughly enjoys. Her presentation will address the importance of mastering basic job search skills, developing a strategy, learning what jobs are in demand, and staying focused and encouraged during the job search.

Paola Amaro Alvarez was born in Guatemala City, C.A. Her mother is also from Guatemala and her father is of Cuban Origin. She was raised in different countries in Europe, Central America and other cities in the United States. This was a result of her father’s graduate studies and his work at United Nations. In 1995 Paola became a US Citizen. Paola graduated with a Business Administration Degree majoring in Human Resources Management from The George Washington University, in Washington DC, after transferring from La Universidad Francisco Marroquín in Guatemala City. After graduating, Paola started her career with Marriott International, where she held different positions in Human Resources in the Washington, DC Metropolitan Area including Director of Human Resources in Washington, DC and Area Director of Human Resources for Montgomery and Prince George’s County in Maryland and Northern Virginia . During this time, Paola enrolled and completed a Graduate Translation Certificate in English/Spanish at George Mason University in Fairfax, VA in 1999. In addition, Paola was certified as a Professional in Human Resources in 2002 by the Human Resources Certification Institute. Furthermore, she enrolled and completed her Master's Degree at Virginia Tech in Adult Learning and Human Resources Development in 2005 at the Northern Virginia Center in Falls Church, VA. In 2006, Paola was offered the position of Director of Human Resources at The Ritz-Carlton, Huntington Hotel and Spa in Pasadena, California. In 2008 after the hotel was sold to an owner operator, she was assigned to several Human Resources assignments with The Ritz-Carlton in Maui, HI, Lake Tahoe, CA, Tucson, AZ, Fort Lauderdale, FL, San Juan, PR and Boston, MA. During this time she was certified by the Human Resources Certification Institute in Human Resources for the State of California. Recently, Paola accepted the position of Director of Human Resources at a luxury hotel and resort management company in California, Montage Hotels and Resorts.

Paola speaks fluent Spanish and has been happily married for 19 years her husband was born in Orlando, Florida and raised in Guatemala City. They have two children: her daughter born in Washington DC graduating from High School in June 2009 and her son born in Fairfax, VA who will be a freshman in High School next year.

Dr. Mirta M. Martín serves as the Special Assistant to the Chancellor for the Virginia Community College System. Prior to this assignment, Dr. Martin served as the Special Assistant to the President of John Tyler Community College and the Executive Vice President of the John Tyler Community Foundation, where she provided leadership in building an effective development and outreach program. Previously, she directed executive education and workforce activities at the University of Richmond, Robins School of Business. She also has over ten years experience as a tenured faculty member and administrator. Dr. Martin started her career in the banking industry, serving in her last position as Senior Vice President for First Union Bank. Dr. Martin also serves as the founding Vice President for the Virginia Latino Higher Education Network (VALHEN).

She received her Baccalaureate from Duke University, with a triple major in Political Science, Psychology, and French. She has an MBA from the University of Richmond and a Ph.D. from Virginia Commonwealth University with a concentration in Strategic Management and Leadership.

Jean-Pierre Laurenceau-Medina is the Associate Director of Multicultural Affairs at the University of Richmond. Jean-Pierre is of Haitian and Ecuadorian descent, and was born in Queens, New York. At the age of 13, Jean-Pierre moved to Guayaquil, Ecuador and attended Jefferson Bilingual High School, specializing in Physics and Mathematics. After graduating from high school, Jean-Pierre started his higher education at a satellite campus of Brookdale Community College (while teaching English as a Second Language to 4th graders full-time) in Guayaquil and later transferred to Pennsylvania State University, where he completed his Bachelor’s degree in Psychology and two Master degrees, in Counselor Education and Higher Education Administration. His first professional experience in higher education was as the Director of the Latino Living Center at Cornell University.

Jean-Pierre has partnered up with Dr. Peter Kaufman, Professor of Leadership Studies, in providing support for the Scholars’ Latino Initiative (SLI) at the University of Richmond. In addition to his teaching and writing, Dr. Kaufman is an activist scholar with a keen interest in opening doors to higher education to underserved populations. In 2002, he founded SLI at the University of North Carolina- Chapel Hill, a college prep and mentoring program for North Carolina high school students, starting during their sophomore year and continuing thru their acceptance into college. Thanks to Dr. Kaufman’s leadership, SLI has recently expanded to the University of Richmond. Please refer to the UNC website for preliminary information—www.unc.edu/sli

Mr. Douglas Garcia, Assistant Secretary of Education, Commonwealth of Virginia, attended Northern Virginia Community College and transferred to James Madison University where in 2002 he received a BA in Political Science and International Affairs with a concentration in Latin America. Upon graduation he began working as Executive Assistant to Lieutenant Governor Tim Kaine, where his primary roles included analyzing policy initiatives as well as legislative tracking during the General Assembly session. He facilitated the Lieutenant Governor’s mission to visit a school in every city and county in the Commonwealth to view firsthand how the state can be a better partner with the K-12 system of education. When Lieutenant Governor Kaine was elected Governor in 2005, Mr. Garcia was appointed to his current position. His duties include promoting the Governor’s Initiatives in the area of Education. Staffed the Governor’s Start Strong Council to develop recommendations for expanding Pre-Kindergarten in the Commonwealth for all four year olds. He oversees regulations that affect state agencies under the Education Secretariat. During the General Assembly session, he also closely monitors education legislation that will affect our K-12 system as well as our institutions of higher education. Mr. Garcia was born in El Salvador and raised in Alexandria VA.

Bill Scharrer, the Planner/Grant Writer for Project Discovery, has 15 years of not-for-profit management experience. He has been the executive director of a housing development and management firm, specializing in special needs housing for mentally ill and developmentally disable populations and was director of the Amherst County Habitat for Humanity chapter in Virginia. In a prior life he lived for 28 years in Alaska where he was an aircraft mechanic and pilot. He is currently conducting research on the post secondary educational outcomes of academically high performing students from low-income households. He holds a Bachelors Degree in economics and finance from the University of Alaska.

Ms. Rhina Ascencio is the daughter of parents who immigrated to the U.S. from El Salvador, she graduated from Prince William County schools in VA with an IB Diploma in 2003, she graduated from George Mason University in 2007 with a B.A. in Biology and English. She has been a part of the Early Identification Program (EIP) since the 8th grade and throughout the end of high school. She was a recipient of the EIP full tuition Scholarship. She now works full time as Tutor Coordinator for EIP where she is happy to help other Latino students like herself to better understand the college application process in order to fulfill their dreams of getting a degree in higher education.

Maricel Quintana-Baker (VALHEN President) serves as Associate Director for Academic Affairs and Planning at the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia (SCHEV). She is responsible for coordinating Virginia’s Outstanding Faculty Awards and the Virginia Doctoral Nursing Loan Repayment Program, coordinates the Agency’s Statewide Strategic Plan, and conducts research on higher education policy. She is a member of the National Advisory Board for the Computing Alliance of Hispanic Serving Institutions and the Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities’ Higher Education Research Collective (H3ERC).

Dr. Quintana-Baker currently serves on the Virginia Council on the Status of Women and on the Executive Board of The Women’s Network, the state affiliate of the American Council on Education's Office of Women in Higher Education. She has also served for five years on the Virginia Latino Advisory Board and is a founding member of the Central Virginia Chapter of LULAC (League of Latin American Citizens). Dr. Quintana-Baker also serves as the founding President for the Virginia Latino Higher Education Network (VALHEN). She held an Oakridge Institute for Science and Education Post-Doctoral Fellowship at the National Science Foundation’s Division of Education and Human Resource Development. She holds a Ph.D. from American University, and is a graduate of the Management Development Program at the Harvard University Graduate School of Education and of Leadership Metro Richmond.

Dr. Mirta M. Martín serves as the Special Assistant to the Chancellor for the Virginia Community College System. Prior to this assignment, Dr. Martin served as the Special Assistant to the President of John Tyler Community College and the Executive Vice President of the John Tyler Community Foundation, where she provided leadership in building an effective development and outreach program. Previously, she directed executive education and workforce activities at the University of Richmond, Robins School of Business. She also has over ten years experience as a tenured faculty member and administrator. Dr. Martin started her career in the banking industry, serving in her last position as Senior Vice President for First Union Bank. Dr. Martin also serves as the founding Vice President for the Virginia Latino Higher Education Network (VALHEN).

She received her Baccalaureate from Duke University, with a triple major in Political Science, Psychology, and French. She has an MBA from the University of Richmond and a Ph.D. from Virginia Commonwealth University with a concentration in Strategic Management and Leadership.

Dr. Manuel A. Pérez-Quiñones is Associate Dean in Residence and Director of the Office for Diversity Programs at the Graduate School, an Associate Professor in the Department of Computer Science, and a member of the Center for Human-Computer Interaction at Virginia Tech. Pérez-Quiñones holds a D. Sc. in Computer Science from The George Washington University. His research interests include human-computer interaction, personal information management, user interface software, digital government, and educational uses of computers.

Dr. Pérez-Quiñones is a member of the Coalition to Diversify Computing, where he co-directs the national program Collaborative Research Experience for Undergraduates in Computer Science and Engineering. He serves on the editorial board for the Journal on Educational Resources in Computing. For 2008-2010 has been included in the IEEE Computer Society Distinguished Visitor program. Dr. Pérez-Quiñones also serves as a founding member for the Virginia Latino Higher Education Network (VALHEN).