Starting my 25th Year at HHF

By Antonio Tijerino

As I start not only 2026 but my 25th year with the Hispanic Heritage Foundation, I am reinvigorated by the opportunities that lie ahead in this privileged position to serve our community, serve our country, and serve everyone with whom I get to do the work.

I am profoundly grateful to the HHF team, board, advisors, sponsors, partners, friends, volunteers and those we serve for the privilege of being in this role as we continue to advance economic mobility, build stronger communities, and elevate positive narratives across education, workforce, societal impact, and leadership. I simply try to stand in the reflected brilliance of those we serve through the work, always the work. I am grateful to our stakeholders for believing in me, in our mission and in our community.

Let me make this clear, the two greatest motivators in my life are someone believing in me and someone not believing in me. They both work just as well but I prefer the former. Thank you, Dr. Pedro Jose Greer, for believing in me when you hired me. And I always believed in the value of our community.

Because the Latino community is not simply a demographic trend—it is a critical investment America needs to make to ensure a successful present and future. That value cannot be underestimated, from our home countries

At times like this when leadership can feel isolated, I count on the countless sources of comfort, inspiration, solidarity, and the challenge to do more.

When people ask me, “how are things?” with a concerned look on their face about the difficulty our community is dealing with, I respond with … it’s tough, but we’re tougher. Tough with compassion.

I wake up every single day ready to love or fight.

From my first year to my 25th in this job, my approach remains the same. This work doesn’t stop when we go home. We are all in the business of hope, unity, comfort, and opportunity and our currency is hope, unity, comfort and opportunity.

Our community, our values and our value, our dignity, are all worth fighting for. The Golden Door referenced at the pedestal of the Statue of Liberty that has symbolized the entry point for immigrants simply seeking opportunity and freedom is worth fighting for. Our migrant community is worth fighting for.

I immigrated to from Nicaragua as a child to Washington, DC, and felt like I didn’t belong. I didn’t understand at that point why I was being defined by my skin tone, my language of origin, my clothes, my food, my parents’ accents, my name, … I didn’t really feel Latino per se, I just felt like me. But soon after, I understood that being me was also being Latino. Not just because it was how others defined me, but it was important that I define myself. It’s a critical part of my identity, my inspiration and my responsibility.

I became an advocate, an activist, a representation not just of me, but of my ancestors and of Latino many people will meet including my children.

We are all responsible for this moment and moments going forward. It’s not about winning a fight – I’ve lost a lot of them – but it is about our communities knowing that they are worth a fight. And as individuals, as institutions and as a country – our values are worth a fight.

So that’s the question I have asked myself and continue to ask myself, “What else can we do?”

We are not helpless.

We need to be more creative, more resourceful, more audacious, more collaborative, more aggressive, more naïve, which allows us to try to do things that seem impossible. That naivete is the starting point to new approaches to old problems.

We also need to be more impatient with the changes we are trying to make. I want to keep that uncomfortable sense of urgency in everything we do. There is no place for patience when our community is being terrorized, when mental health is being pushed to a limit, when opportunities are being limited. When the promise of our community is being compromised. We have so much to offer this great country.

And America needs us. Our innovation, our labor, our culture, our service, our culture, our population growth, our economic power, our entrepreneurship, … us.

Y aqui estamos. That simple statement means so much.

We are bound by a radiant culture that shines across everyone that sees that light whether it’s a flicker or a raging brilliance. That glow of hope is critical for all of us but especially for our most vulnerable communities. These are parents, children, and neighbors who contribute every day to our communities, pay billions in taxes and their only crime is to want to provide a better life for their families and contribute to our great country.

Our immigrant communities are an embodiment of American resilience, sacrifice, and hope—the same values that have drawn centuries of immigrants to this country, including our founding fathers.

And America can’t afford to lose a brilliant mind that is in the shadows because the next breakthrough in AI, clean energy, or medical research will likely come from someone whose family arrived here just a generation ago. The next chapter of America’s history will be written in large part by Latinos and immigrants.

And we are here for it at the Hispanic Heritage Foundation.

Did you know that 78 percent of all new jobs will be filled by a Latino over the next five years and we need to make sure we’re prepared. At HHF, we have taught 100,000 students how to code and are now also teaching AI, cyber and other skills with credentials to youth and adult learners across our country. The LOFT Leadership Institute has connected, prepared and supported tens of thousands of Latinos to maximize their vision and brilliance. We are also leveraging video gaming to engage and teach youth about STEM career paths, tech and the environment and the Latin Explorers game with Minecraft was played by 30 million children in almost 30 different languages.

Our award-winning community Charlas allows us to listen and react to our community because our community leads us, it’s not the other way around. We are focused on making sure mental health is a priority because it affects EVERYTHING.

We are launching, supporting and helping small businesses including in the start up space to continue to power America’s entrepreneurial spirit.

The historic Hispanic Heritage Awards kicked off 38 years ago as the Reagan Administration established Hispanic Heritage Month in America and continues to highlight Latino accomplishment, vision and cultural pride along through a star-studded tribute is broadcast on PBS.

Our Fritanga podcast highlights our stories and visions for a greater understanding and appreciation of our experiences, our differences and what binds us. Because we need to tell our stories, define ourselves and radiate our cultural pride.

And yes, I know I’m all over the place. But the needs of our community are all over the place. I always say that if I’m in your lane, it’s because I want to carpool.

I am energized and ready to continue the work with great optimism and belief in our mission and in our community. Please join us in our mission to move our community and our country forward.