WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, The Hispanic Heritage Foundation (HHF) announced the recipients of the Washington, DC Regional Hispanic Heritage Youth Awards (see names below). Twenty-one local high school seniors will be honored for their leadership in the classroom and community during a ceremony at Arent Fox | Auditorium- 2nd Floor | 1717 K St.  NW, Washington, DC 20036 on December 12, 2017 from 6pm to 8pm. In commemoration of the 19th anniversary of the Youth Awards, the ceremony will spotlight past Youth Awardees with special guests in attendance. To follow the Youth Awards Ceremony online, use the hashtag #YouthAwards17.

The Youth Awardees will receive grants for their education, or to fund an idea or community project to encourage “actionable leadership,” which is HHF’s call to action.  Recipients will then be mentored by past Youth Awardees as they prepare to attend college and into their careers through HHF’s award-winning Latinos On Fast Track (LOFT) workforce development program. The Youth Awards are taking place in 10 regions across the country with prestigious Hispanic Heritage Youth Awardees selected from thousands of applicants.  The average GPA for the students is nearly a 4.0.

“We are thrilled to honor yet another class of outstanding young Latino leaders from Washington, DC who will certainly make an impact on our communities and workforce as they move forward in their careers,” said Antonio Tijerino, President and CEO, HHF.  “We also applaud the vision of our sponsors as they share our focus in supporting what we consider priority fields for America.  We believe these are the young leaders of today, not tomorrow and frankly, we can’t afford to wait.  I will say that after 19 years of Youth Awards, there is no shortage of top, young, Latino talent.” 

The Hispanic Heritage Foundation (HHF) will also recognize a parent with the Hispanic Heritage Innovative Pearson Parent Award, sponsored by Pearson in honor of the pivotal role parents play in the educational success of Latino youth. Parents are nominated by more than 200 recipients of the prestigious Hispanic Heritage Youth Awards.

Additional sponsors of the Youth Awards include Nascar, IndieDesk, Macy’s, Crowell & Moring, UPS, Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute, Inc, and Es Tiempo. HHF also partners with thousands of high schools, colleges, community organizations, media outlets and business partners on the program. 

After the regional ceremonies, the Regional Youth Awards recipients will be narrowed to one National Youth Award recipient for each of the seven categories and celebrated at the National Youth Awards presentation along with celebrities who are recognized for being role models.  National Awardees will also receive a laptop computer and all-expense-paid trip to the ceremony (location TBD).

2017 Washington, DC Regional Hispanic Heritage Youth Awards Recipients:

Business & Entrepreneurship, sponsored by BBVA Compass:

Gold: Kelsey Tomas

Silver: Magin Sanchez

Bronze: Marjory Pineda

Community Service, sponsored by Colgate-Palmolive:

Gold: Antonella Vendrell

Silver: Luis Tetatzin

Bronze: Juan Avilez

Education, sponsored by Southwest Airlines (Official Airlines of the Youth Awards):

Gold: Pamela Paz

Silver: Camile Caldera

Bronze: Maria Bayon

Engineering & Mathematics, sponsored by the Hispanic Heritage Foundation:

Gold: Catherine Martinez

Silver: Dennis Alvarenga

Bronze: Gary Tompkins

Healthcare & Science, sponsored by CVS Health:

Gold: Jessica Escobar

Silver: Kyndall Villareal

Bronze: Isabella Lorence

Technology, sponsored by Google:

Gold: Xavier Arguello

Silver: Andonny Garcia

Bronze: Mellany Ona Ayala

About Hispanic Heritage Foundation