Scholars Latino Initiative begins its second decade providing college access by welcoming a new chair and new members on its board of directors.
“At its core, SLI is a community-based organization led by volunteer board members committed to our mission to support higher education opportunities for Latinx young people,” Dr. Jason Good, who served as chair from 2019-2022 and is the vice president for enrollment management at Ringling College of Art and Design, said. “The board has provided vital leadership in SLI’s founding and development over the past decade, bringing us to this moment, and its current and growing strength promises an even brighter future.”
Dr. Fawn-Amber Montoya of Harrisonburg is the new board chair, and has been a member of the organization since 2021. She is associate dean for diversity, inclusion and external engagement at James Madison University. She previously served as director of the Honors program at Colorado State University Pueblo, where she focused on Mexican-American history.
“Me ha impresionado el trabajo que se ha logrado en los últimos 10 años y me emociona tener esta oportunidad de servir a mi gente en Virginia,” Montoya said. “I am thrilled to be serving as the board chair for SLI, and excited to work with board members and SLI staff to support high school students. I know how important it is for the Latino/a/x population to have an organization like SLI that can assist high school students with getting to and being successful in higher education.”
New members of the board are Steve Burkholder of Broadway, Lisette Carbajal of Richmond, Hector Cendejas of Arlington and Diana Patterson of Winchester.
Burkholder, a financial planner at Everence Financial and SLI’s treasurer, is a graduate of Eastern Mennonite University and has taught middle and high school math. He and his wife, Olivia, have two sons, Carson and Micah.
“I am excited to join this board that cares deeply about the SLI students and hope to provide my areas of expertise to help further its mission,” Burkholder said.
Carbajal, a member of Capital One’s State and Local Government Affairs Group, also serves as chief of staff for HOLA, Capital One’s Hispanic business/associate resource group. Previously director of government affairs of the Virginia Health Care Association and a policy advisor and community integration coordinator at Virginia Department for Aging and Rehabilitative Services, Carbajal was appointed as a policy advisor and Latino liaison by Gov. Terry McAuliffe to his administration in 2014.
Carbajal’s parents immigrated from Lima, Peru, and although she was born in the United States, English is her second language. She received a bachelor’s degree from UVA in foreign affairs with a concentration in Latin America, and a master’s degree in Public Administration from Virginia Tech. She is married to Graham Elder and has a goldendoodle named Lilo.
“My experience navigating through the higher education system was an unknown path, as no one in my family had ever gone to college before me,” Carbajal said. “Being able to guide students in achieving their goal to obtain a higher education is a passion of mine since I know the opportunities it can bring. SLI’s work not only allows students to explore opportunities outside of their surroundings; it also allows them to achieve the social and economic success many immigrant parents wish for their children.”
Cendejas is the family reunification program director at Catholic Charities of the Diocese of Arlington, an adjunct faculty at the University of Maryland School of Social Work and George Mason University, and an online adjunct field liaison at the Virginia Commonwealth University School of Social Work. A social work field instructor for students from VCU, GMU, Capella University and Columbia University, he earned a bachelor’s degree in sociology from Georgetown University, a master of social work in community organization, planning and administration from University of Southern California, and a master of education in human development and psychology, child advocacy strand, from Harvard University.
“I believe in serving our community of future leaders!” Cendejas said.
Patterson is owner and CEO of DSP Marketing & Consulting and a Hispanic/Latino business consultant for Laurel Ridge Small Business Development Center. She was born in El Salvador and naturalized in the U.S. in 2018. Patterson serves on the United Way of Northern Shenandoah Valley board of directors, the Shenandoah University School of Business board of advisors, and the governor’s Virginia Latino Advisory Board, for which she chairs the business and workforce committee. Patterson was an inaugural member of the SLI advisory council.
“I grew up worrying that my family or I could be deported any day, translating for my parents, and accepting the fact that I would become just another blue-collar worker like my mother and father. I am now passionate about mentoring youth who may still be in that situation, to help them appreciate their bilingualism, have gratitude for the pressure to mature at an early age, and develop a desire to become the next generation of community servants and leaders,” Patterson said.
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Rebecca Barnabi
