By Eduardo Morales, Ph.D.–
2024 marks the 30th anniversary of AGUILAS (Asamblea Gay Unida Impactando Latinos A Superarse), so this year for the San Francisco Bay Times we are highlighting achievements of the longstanding San Francisco-based nonprofit.
For over a decade of those 30 years, AGUILAS has had La Academia, which provides educational opportunities for the Latinx LGBTQI community. Today we announce that on March 4, 5, 6, and 7, 2024, La Academia de AGUILAS will for the first time ever offer an advanced set of four, four-hour workshops designed by La Academia to further develop Latinx LGBTQI leadership skills.
Over four years ago, the ViiV Healthcare Foundation conducted a study throughout the U.S. with the goal of designing an initiative addressing the health of the LGBTQI community. Interestingly, they found that leadership development is a significant need for the community across various U.S. regions, including here in the Bay Area. The larger question posed by the study was, “Who in the LGBTQI community will assume leadership amid an aging group of leaders?” The upcoming La Academia workshops will help pave the way for that emerging group of new leaders.
La Academia originated over 13 years ago with funding from the Levi Strauss Foundation. AGUILAS revived the program with funding provided by a ViiV Healthcare Foundation grant. Now updated, the overall program offers two sets of four, four-hour workshops: a basic level and an advanced level. In partnership with Alliant International University, AGUILAS will give a certificate of completion to participants who attend the set of four workshops.
To date, 55 individuals have participated in one or more of the basic trainings, while 15 people completed the basic set and therefore received a completion certificate. Both workshop levels provide useful skills and information on financial management, communication tools, legal rights awareness, and effective strategies for advocacy. For more information and to reserve your place in the program for the upcoming workshops, go to https://www.sfaguilas.org/
Eduardo Morales, Ph.D. is a Professor Emeritus, retired Distinguished Professor, and current adjunct professor at Alliant International University. He is also a licensed psychologist and a founder and current Executive Director of AGUILAS, an award-winning program for Latinx LGBTQ+. Of Puerto Rican decent, he has received numerous distinguished awards and citations, including being named a Fellow of 12 divisions of the American Psychological Association.
Nuestra Voz
Published on February 8, 2024
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