New Report Outlines Need for Effective Hispanic-Serving Programs

Washington D.C. (Oct. 4, 2012) — The National Alliance for Hispanic Families today released a new report, La Diferencia: Grassroots Organizations Uniquely Serving Hispanic Communities Through Culturally Relevant, Family-Focused Programs, detailing the urgent need for sustainable programs that solve critical problems within the Hispanic community.  The report provides an overview of successful Hispanic-focused organizations built upon four key elements that transform the lives of thousands of Hispanic individuals and families.

“This report takes a serious and close look at the basic makeup of successful organizations currently serving this vital community,” said Jose Villalobos, Sr. Vice President of TELACU.  “The foundational elements among these diverse programs are the same, and must be tested in other communities with other Hispanic groups to show they work best.”

The report outlines the unique characteristics that allow organizations to effectively engage individuals that other groups often are unable to reach.  Also highlighted are  personal success stories and detailed program overviews for eight successful organizations around the country:  Soledad Enrichment Action (Los Angeles, CA), Instituto del Progreso Latino (Chicago, IL), Comunilife Life Is Precious (Bronx/Brooklyn, NY), enFAMILIA, (Homestead, FL), Creciendo Unidos (Phoenix, AZ), Con Mi MADRE (Austin, TX), Family Bridges and FuturoNow (Chicago, IL/Los Angeles, CA).

Unfortunately there are many challenges that impede the progress of Hispanic-serving organizations, the report says. These include apathy and indifference in non-immigration related issues, unbalanced focus on intervention rather than prevention, insufficient number of Hispanics in positions of influence, and restrictive emphasis on evidence-based models.

La Diferencia makes recommendations for building and sustaining responsive programs, and calls on policymakers to fund the evaluation and replication of those programs at levels commensurate with the Hispanic population growth.

For a copy of the complete report, click here.