title
PROPOSED RESOLUTION
HONORING THE RETIREMENT OF SYLVIA PUENTE FROM THE LATINO POLICY FORUM
WHEREAS, Sylvia Puente, a Chicago native, public policy expert, and civic leader, has dedicated her career to advocating for justice, equity, and economic prosperity and has made immeasurable contributions to advancing equity for Latinos for the betterment of all Cook County and Illinois residents; and
WHEREAS, Sylvia Puente's activism began at age 13 when she walked the picket lines supporting the United Farm Workers (UFW) Union with her mother to protest inequities in housing, pay, and education; and
WHEREAS, Sylvia Puente is the first in her family to earn a college degree. She holds a bachelor's degree in economics from the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign; and
WHEREAS, Sylvia Puente continued graduate studies at the Harvard Kennedy School of Government and earned her master's degree from the Harris School of Public Policy at the University of Chicago; and
WHEREAS, Sylvia Puente has been frequently cited in the media as an expert on Latino issues and has published numerous reports that articulate the vital role they play in society; and
WHEREAS, Sylvia Puente served as director of the Center for Metropolitan Chicago Initiatives for the University of Notre Dame's Institute for Latino Studies from 2001-2008 where she published the first reports on Latino growth in the Chicago suburbs; and
WHEREAS, Sylvia Puente was appointed by Governor JB Pritzker to his Educational Success Transition Committee, the Restore, Reinvest, Renew Board, and the State Housing Task Force; and
WHEREAS, previous governors appointed her to the state's Education Funding Advisory Board and the Early Learning Council; and
WHEREAS, Sylvia Puente serves on the board of Advance Illinois, and is a member of Illinois Unidos, a consortium of local Latino leaders dedicated to addressing the public health and the economic impact of COVID-19 on the Latino community statewide; ...
Click here for full text