Michigan Hispanic Collaborative

Bold ideas, powerful voices, and limitless potential defined this year’s Latina Leaders x Design (L2xD) summer program. 🩷

L2xD is a three-week summer leadership program empowering young Latinas entering 9th and 10th grade to build confidence, develop essential skills, and prepare for high school, college, and beyond.

Through hands-on projects, inspiring Latina guest speakers, professional connections, and a visit to Carhartt, participants explored real challenges facing their communities— including education, immigration, mental health, and access to resources. Their ideas
came to life through websites, apps, social media, and other creative solutions that showed their passion for helping others.

By the end of the program, participants had grown into confident presenters and leaders who were willing to step outside their comfort zones, share their voices, and support one another. Their final presentations showcased not only the creative solutions they
developed, but also the confidence, resilience, and leadership they gained throughout the program.

This is what happens when young Latinas are given the space to dream, design, and lead.

Henry Ford Learning Institute

We can’t wait to hear from Keynote Speaker Miguel Rodriguez at Gran Fiesta next week!

Miguel Rodriguez is the Executive Director of the Detroit Hispanic Development Corporation (DHDC). With more than 20 years of experience in community organizing, youth leadership, and international development, he has led initiatives focused on civic engagement, workforce development, violence prevention, and economic mobility in communities across the United States, Latin America, and the Caribbean. Before joining DHDC, he served in leadership roles with both Michigan-based and global nonprofit organizations and holds a B.A. in International Development Studies from UCLA.

Gran Fiesta is MiHC's annual send-off event for graduating high school Scholars going to college, trade school, or starting an apprenticeship and graduating college Scholars continuing to grad school or launching their careers.

“My father told me to never forget where I came from—I have not. He knew I was going to college. He believed in me. He believed in me when I didn’t even know I should believe in myself.” Growing up in southwest Detroit, JoAnn Chávez ‘86, ‘90 J.D. could have found herself trapped in the cycle of poverty and addiction that surrounded her. But when she made her way to @notredame she was determined to write her own narrative. Now she’s helping “la próxima generacíon,” the next generation, through her work as the founder, president, and CEO of the Michigan Hispanic Collaborative, a nonprofit that provides support to first-generation students navigating college and what comes next.

And the Fiesta continues 🎓👏✨

Congratulations to all our class of 2026 scholars, We’re so proud of all you’ve accomplished and can’t wait to see what you achieve next!

Let’s continue to celebrate you, join us at our Gran Fiesta on July 29th to celebrate our high school and college graduates 🎓✨ 💃🏻🕺🏻🪅📚

📆: July 29th 2026
⏰: 6:00pm - 8:00pm
📍2050 15th Street Detroit MI

RSVP Here: https://forms.cloud.microsoft/Pages/ResponsePage.aspx?id=a9ZFNViYakO1g0J-1mEYw6e0OaWMTvlJghFy7lzJg_5URE1NTllZSDlFTFJKUlpZMzVZNTBDWFNKRS4u&origin=QRCode

Calling all college freshman 📞🏫✨

Join us for our Mental Health 101 Workshop with our guest therapist Lucy Arias 🧘🏻🧠✨

This workshop is designed to help you create a balance when it comes to school, work, and life!

Don’t miss out, RSVP today!

📆: June 30th
⏰: 1:00pm
📍: NewLab

link to apply: https://forms.office.com/pages/responsepage.aspx?id=a9ZFNViYakO1g0J-1mEYw6mC4eif-AdGnKSsSdiSSUBUM0VTN01LOE5MSUFWTUJYV0laSkNRM1JYVi4u&origin=QRCode&qrcodeorigin=presentation&route=shorturl

Paletas at the park ☀️✨

Last week we hosted our 2nd Paletas at the park event, high school graduates and new MiHC scholars got to make some new connections and enjoy delicious paletas thank you to La Fiesta Ice Cream Shop ✨

Events like these remind us that scholar success is built not only through resources and guidance, but also through a strong sense of community and belonging.

Any MiHC scholar who is heading in the college in the fall won't want to miss our first Summer Melt Workshop! RSVP and join us tomorrow at Newlab! Spots are limited, so sign up today at the link our story!

We’re incredibly grateful to Damian Rivera, CEO of for taking the time to speak with our staff last month.

Your insights, leadership, and commitment to uplifting our community continue to inspire us.

At MiHC, we deeply value our partnership with ALPFA and the shared mission of empowering Latino students and future leaders. Together, we’ve already seen the transformative impact this collaboration has on our students, and we’re excited to keep building on that momentum.

We look forward to continuing our work together to connect even more MiHC students with ALPFA opportunities and experiences that shape their academic and professional journeys.

¡Gracias for your partnership and support!