Jeff recommended Kita y Fernanda Adds Show Oct. 22nd

BIOGRAPHY

Sylvia Puente is a leading public policy analyst on issues impacting Latinos. She has been recognized as one of the “100 Most Influential Hispanics in the U.S.” by Hispanic Business magazine. Since 2001, Puente has worked as the director of the Center for Metropolitan Chicago Initiatives for the Institute for Latino Studies at the University of Notre Dame, where she directs community research, promotes community capacity-building, and speaks on issues that affect Latinos. While at ILS she has been a catalyst for sparking a regional dialogue on the impact of Latino growth in the Chicago Metropolitan area, and directed a seminal study “Bordering the Mainstream” on the needs of the Latino population in Berwyn and Cicero, Illinois.

Prior to this position, Puente worked for two Chicago-based organizations that played a leading role in addressing a range of Latino issues  – The Resurrection Project and the Latino Institute. She served as the New Community Initiatives Director for The Resurrection Project, developing community programs in the areas of health, education, and economic development.

At the Latino Institute – a prominent think thank on Latino issues -- she served as director of research, public policy and advocacy, overseeing the development of analyses on issues such as immigration, workforce development, and education. Before working for these organizations, Puente also gained broad experience in policy, legislative and decision-making processes in a variety of positions with the state of Illinois.  

In 2006, Puente was awarded the Sor Juana Women of Achievement Award for Community Service by the National Museum of Mexican Art and in 2003, Puente was one of 25 Chicago area women named a “Pioneer for Social Justice.”  She holds an M.A. in Public Policy Studies form the University of Chicago and a B.A. in Economics from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.  Her mother introduced Puente to a life of activism at the age of 13 when she joined her first picket line in support of the United Farm Workers.