History of the ASHA Hispanic Caucus

Haciendo Historia (Making History)

Past Presidents Timeline

We are proud to recognize the exceptional leaders who have served as Presidents of the ASHA Hispanic Caucus. Their dedication and leadership have shaped our organization and inspired generations of professionals.

Kelly Ann Peña

2024-2022

Sofia Carias

2020-2022

Luis F. Riquelme

2012-2014

Linda Rosa-Lugo

2016-2019

Nate Cornish

Melissa White

2014-2016

John Consalvi

Currently Updating Our Archives
We are working diligently to compile a complete timeline of past presidents, including their names and years of service. However, some data is still missing from our archives.

Help Us Complete the Timeline!
If you have information about any of our past presidents, such as their names or the years they served, please click here to share your contributions.

Thank you for helping us honor the legacy of leadership within the Hispanic Caucus!

History

2000

Diversity is at the forefront of the Hispanic Caucus as we represent members of several ethnic groups originating from Puerto Rico, the Dominican Republic, Cuba, Central and South America, and Mexico. We are a heterogeneous group with some similar traits, characteristics, and traditions. We are united by our culture and our common desire to meet the needs of the Hispanic population with communication and/or swallowing disorders.

2004

The first Hispanic Caucus website was launched. Not pretty by today’s standards but it helped to keep us united.

2015

Hispanic Caucus members unite with other multicultural constituency groups to present a united front of professionals serving important populations.

2024

Dr. Linda Rosa-Lugo is the first Latina to be elected president of the ASHA Board of Directors. Her appointment represents a monumental achievement and an inspiring step forward for diversity and inclusion within the Association's leadership.

1992

The Hispanic Caucus (HC) was formed in March 1992, when Luis F. Riquelme and Alexandra Heinsen-Combs sent letters to as many Hispanic and non-Hispanic clinicians they could identify, who were working with the Latino community nationwide. Initial response was enthusiastic-by November 1992, the Hispanic Caucus held its first membership forum at the ASHA Annual Convention in San Antonio, Texas. The group was initially guided by leaders in the field interested in diversity issues: Aquiles Iglesias, Hortencia G. Kayser, and Lorraine Cole.

1993

In 1993, the founding Steering Committee was formed.

Members of the Steering Committee included: Judith Aguilera-Posen, Alejandro Brice, Teresita Foster, Robert D. Hernández, Alina de la Paz, Emilio Pérez, Marlene B. Salas-Provance, Mariana Urbina, Nancy Vidal, and Co-Chairs Luis F. Riquelme and Alexandra Heinsen-Combs.

By the second year of the HC, over 300 clinicians nationwide joined the group. Activities of the Steering Committee included developing a set of By-Laws for the group, strategic planning, maintaining communication with the ASHA Executive Board, and presenting poster sessions at annual meetings of ASHA to increase visibility.

1994

Leaders of the HC initiated a series of dialogues with ASHA Executive Board members to discuss issues of mutual concern. This has resulted in the representation of Latino professionals in all business of ASHA, restructuring of the Multicultural Issues Board to include the multicultural constituency groups, greater visibility of Latinos as clinicians and clients in promotional materials, continued efforts to enhance the Minority Scholarship Fund of the ASHFoundation, and various ASHA policy documents, including addressing clinicians/students with a non-standard accent.

2004

The Hispanic Caucus has been meeting yearly for a decade at the ASHA convention. The meeting continues to be a vibrant combination of a work agenda with a “show and tell” of the accomplishments of the HIC members from across the world. The attendance at these meetings ranges between 50-100 professionals. Each year, the HC has been fortunate to offer free raffles of materials and books donated by companies like Super Duper, The Psychological Corporation/Harcourt, Kay Elemetrics, Singular, Thomson, Delmar Learning, and others.

2010

The Hispanic Caucus Facebook was launched, and the community grew into the hundreds immediately. We have come a long way from the first letters that went out looking for professionals who spoke Spanish or served Spanish-speaking children, a website is launched.

2017

A new Hispanic Caucus website is launched to connect our online communities, ASHA resources, and all the great things that HC members are doing professionally.

The Future

We continue to work towards improving the resources and we are united in our dedication to serve Hispanic people with communication disorders.

ASHA Awards & Recognitions

We celebrate the achievements of our Hispanic Caucus members who have been recognized for their outstanding contributions to the field of speech-language pathology, audiology, and related areas. Below is a list of members who have received prestigious honors and awards.

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  • The Honors of the Association recognizes members for their distinguished contributions to the discipline of communication sciences and disorders and is the highest honor the Association bestows.

    • Brice, Alejandro E. (2021)

    • Crowley, Catherine J. (2023)

    • Langdon, Henriette W. (2019)

    • Pena, Elizabeth (2024)

    • Riquelme, Luis F. (2024)

  • The status of Fellow is retained for life and is one of the highest honors this professional organization can bestow. It recognizes professional or scientific achievement and is given to a member who has shown outstanding contribution to the professions-contributions that are significant and would be so regarded within and beyond one's community or state. Our profession has thousands of members who fulfill their responsibilities competently and well, but only a small percentage have, by virtue of the quality and amount of their contributions, distinguished themselves sufficiently to warrant recognition by election to Fellow in ASHA.

    • Bedore, Lisa M.

    • Brice, Alejandro

    • Cancel, Cruz A.

    • Centeno, Jose G.

    • Centeno-Vázquez, María A.

    • Cole, Lorraine T.

    • Crowley, Catherine J.

    • Fabiano, Leah C.

    • Iglesias, Aquiles

    • Kayser, Hortencia Garcia

    • Munoz, Maria L.

    • Pena, Elizabeth

    • Restrepo, M. Adelaida

    • Riquelme, Luis F.

    • Rosa-Lugo, Linda

    • Roseberry-McKibben, Celeste

    • Salas-Provance, Marlene B.

    • Troche, Michelle S.

    • Brice, Alejandro E.

    • Centeno, Jose

    • Crowley, Catherine J.

    • Guiberson, Mark M.

    • Gutierrez-Clellen F., Vera

    • Langdon, Henriette W.

    • Riquelme, Luis F.

    • Rodriguez, Barbara L.

    • Roman, T. Rosario

    • Rosa-Lugo, Linda I. 

    • Roseberry-McKibbin, Celeste

    • Salas-Provance, Marlene

    • Crowley, Catherine J.

    • Rosa-Lugo, Linda I.

    • Salas-Provance, Marlene

  • The Distinguished Early Career Professional (ECP) Certificate was created to recognize and identify ECPs in the fields of audiology and speech-language pathology who are making an impact in the areas of leadership, volunteering, or advocacy at the local, state, and/or national level. This will also highlight the involvement of ECPs in their local, state, and community speech-language-hearing associations. 

    • Esparza, Inez

    • Maldonado De la Rosa, Ivonne

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