Board of Directors Announces Leadership Transition
Isabel Rubio Steps into Next Chapter After 20 Years; ¡HICA! Positioned for its Next Season of Growth with Carlos Alemán as Chief Executive Officer
Contact: Silvia Espinosa Laxson, 205-942-5505, sespinosa@hicaalabama.org
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Birmingham, July 21, 2021 - The Board of Directors of ¡HICA!, the Hispanic Interest Coalition of Alabama, announces a long-planned change in leadership. Isabel Rubio, Founder and Chief Executive Officer for 20 years, will step down from her position on December 31, 2021. Carlos Alemán, ¡HICA!’s Chief Operating Officer, will step into the role of Chief Executive Officer on January 1, 2022. Dr. Alemán joined ¡HICA!’s professional staff in 2018 as Deputy Director.
“Working at ¡HICA! has been an extraordinary experience”, Ms. Rubio stated. “The opportunity to serve my community in collaboration with my incredible teammates has been a privilege and honor. I am proud of our accomplishments, especially creating a place that welcomes, embraces and empowers our Latino community to achieve their dreams and aspirations. I am deeply grateful for the support ¡HICA! has received: our funders who have believed in us, our partners who have welcomed us and been willing to be changed by us, and our Latino community who gave us their trust. I look forward to supporting Carlos and the Board of Directors as ¡HICA! continues its high level of service to the community.”
Since founding ¡HICA! in 1999, Ms. Rubio has grown the organization from a staff of one into a robust, culturally-specific organization with binational recognition. ¡HICA!’s staff of 26 bilingual professionals serves more than 5,000 people each year. Ms. Rubio has raised more than $19 million to support Latinos with college access, citizenship, and access to capital, including small business development, entrepreneurship, and home ownership. In 2021, that work culminated in the pursuit of the Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI) designation for the Camino Loan Fund of ¡HICA!, which will allow ¡HICA! to provide even more financial resources for the Latino community.
With more than 20 years’ experience in nonprofit leadership, Ms. Rubio’s future plans include continued service to the community with specific interests in the areas of strategy, community development and engagement, philanthropy, social justice and equity, after a brief period of respite in early 2022.
On January 1, 2022, Carlos Alemán will become ¡HICA!’s Chief Executive Officer. Carlos has a long history of both professional leadership and board service to ¡HICA!, beginning as a board member and serving as Chair of the Board of Directors prior to becoming ¡HICA!’s Deputy Director in 2018. Prior to joining ¡HICA!’s staff, Carlos was an assistant professor of history at Samford University, a position he began after completing a Ph.D. in history at Michigan State University, with an emphasis on Latin America, immigration, and race.
Carlos is a first-generation immigrant from Nicaragua. He and his family are deeply rooted in the Birmingham community, exemplified by his civic commitments. In August 2020, Carlos was elected to Homewood’s City Council, becoming the first Latino elected to public office in Alabama. Carlos is a board member of several organizations including the National Partnership for New Americans (NPNA), the Alabama Business Charitable Trust Fund, the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute, Red Mountain Park and the Literacy Council of Central Alabama. Carlos is a 2020 graduate of Leadership Birmingham.
“It is an honor and a privilege to step into the Chief Executive Officer role at ¡HICA! – it is a dream come true for me,” states Dr. Alemán. “As an immigrant who came to this country as a child, I have been able to realize many opportunities because my family relied on organizations like ¡HICA!. I feel a deep sense of responsibility and gratitude to every person who walks through ¡HICA!’s doors because I know first-hand what it means to be welcomed. I look forward to serving our community and working with our terrific team as we lead ¡HICA! into its next era.”
For the past three years, Ms. Rubio and Dr. Alemán have worked side-by-side, with ¡HICA!’s Board of Directors, to prepare for this transition in leadership. Ms. Rubio and Dr. Alemán have led the organization through the development of a new strategic plan, which provides a clear roadmap for the future. In the coming years, ¡HICA! will continue to carry out the programs that the community depends on while it expands its support for access to capital for business owners and homeowners and deepens its policy advocacy work on behalf of the Latino community.
¡HICA!’s vision is an Alabama in which everyone has full and equal participation in civic, cultural, social, and economic life. Its mission is to champion equality, civic engagement, and social justice for Latino and immigrant families in Alabama.
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