Rice University hosted the Houston Mayor’s Hispanic Advisory Board holiday reception Dec. 16 at Cohen House. The soiree was attended by Houston Mayor John Whitmire and the advisory board members as well as several notable Houstonians.
The reception served as a way to thank the board for its work this year and to celebrate the Hispanic Heritage Award winners, whom the mayor announced during Hispanic Heritage Month.
“At Rice, we take pride in celebrating our vibrant Hispanic community,” President Reginald DesRoches said as he welcomed the guests. “Two years ago we marked the 50th anniversary of HACER, Rice’s Hispanic student organization, with a gala at River Oaks Country Club, which raised $50,000 to create an endowment supporting leadership development and expanding programs. Today, our Hispanic community continues to grow and thrive at Rice. Hispanic students make up 16% of our undergraduate students and approximately 10% of our graduate population, and 8% of our faculty are now Hispanic.”
DesRoches also spoke of Rice’s ongoing vision that will benefit the city and the world.
“We know there’s still more work to do as part of our commitment to inclusion and diversity,” he said. “We aim to expand our faculty to reflect the greater diversity in both background and gender. We also focus on increasing our international student population, particularly by recruiting more students from Latin America.”
Whitmire acknowledged the advisory board’s hard work and reinforced his goal to establish a City Hall and leadership that more closely resembles Houston’s racial makeup.
He mentioned the installment of both Houston fire Chief Thomas Muñoz and police Chief J. Noe Diaz, who are both Hispanic. He also reflected on his long-standing relationship with the Latino community and his role in creating a Hispanic state Senate seat.
Whitmire also discussed the importance of not favoring one community over another and the need for diversity in City Hall and finished with a charge for civic engagement.
“Thanks for serving on the advisory group,” he said. “We’re going to have a strong advisory group. We’re going to find out who wants to do the heavy lifting … and then we’re going to leave City Hall, get out in the community and bring back to City Hall solutions and opportunities for our community.”
Among the guests were Muñoz, Diaz, Judge Sofia Adrogué, City Attorney Arturo Michel, Consul General of Mexico María Elena Orantes López, co-chairs of the Mayor’s Hispanic Advisory Board Roland Garcia and Lenora Sorola-Pohlman, City Councilmember Julian Ramirez and Rice Trustee George Gonzalez.
The evening ended with a festive serenade from Mariachi Luna Llena.
“In the 16 years that I have been on the Mayor’s Hispanic Advisory Board, this is the best holiday reception we have ever had,” said David Medina, director of multicultural community relations at Rice and one of the event organizers. “The speakers, the prominent guests, the music and food all made for an excellent place to celebrate the Hispanic culture and the holidays.”