Esta primavera, los graduados se abrieron camino en el escenario portando orgullosamente sus diplomas. Poco después ya se estaban preparando para las carreras profesionales a las que sus experiencias universitarias los prepararon. Uno de los ámbitos que da la bienvenida a estos potenciales nuevos miembros de la fuerza laboral es STEM (acrónimo de ciencia, tecnología, […]

Author Archives: Serena Sanchez
Serena Sanchez is a freelance writer for CALÓ NEWS. She grew up in San Pedro, Calif., and studied journalism at California State University, Dominguez Hills. Her reporting interests include art, the environment, and social justice. Pronouns: she/her/hers. Preferred ethnic tag: Latinx. If you have any questions, concerns, or corrections related to this story, please contact serenamichellesanchez@gmail.com.
“First Voice Generation” documentary follows first-generation Latinos, explores socioeconomic inequities in college
Following three Latinx high school students in Holland, Michigan, the documentary of award-winning Director, Cynthia Martinez’s named ” First Voice Generation,” depicts their individual journeys as first-generation Latino students preparing to be the first of their families to attend college, while struggling with their identities in a predominately Dutch community.
Veronica Valencia-Hughes, Latina designer and mother of two, is the host of HGTV’s Revealed
Valencia-Hughes has garnered nearly 20 years of experience in the design world, spending much of that time running behind-the-scenes design teams for 600+ TV home renovation projects for HGTV, Netflix, ABC, NBC, Fox, CNBC and OWN. Additionally, after meeting her husband, Kristopher Hughes, the two of them launched their design studio, The Design Hunters, in 2013, which is a “full-service interior design, styling and creative development company based out of Los Angeles and New York City.
Actress and author Andrea Navedo shares her wisdom from growing up in the Bronx in her first book
In 2018, 30 years after graduating from Dewitt Clinton High School, Andrea Navedo, widely known for her role as Xiomara, “Xo,” Villanueva in the CW’s American Telenovela, Jane the Virgin, was invited to give the commencement speech at her alma mater.
CSU STEM programs are working to increase women and Latinas in the workforce; meet three trailblazers
Women comprise half of the total United States college-educated workforce, but only 34% of the science and engineering workforce, according to the National Girls Collaborative Project. Despite STEM being male-dominated, women in these occupations, between 2011 and 2021, have increased by 31%. On top of an increase in women, the U.S. STEM workforce, as stated in the National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics’ 2023 report, Diversity and STEM: Women, Minorities, and Persons with Disabilities, has gradually become more diverse with an increase in representation of Latino, Black and Indigenous minorities.
CEO of Armando F. Sanchez Production on Writers Guild Strike, how growth of AI will affect Latinos
Beginning May 2, the Writers Guild of America (WGA), a West and East region labor union representing thousands of writers behind various beloved television series, news programs and films, went on strike in Los Angeles and New York, demanding higher compensation, increased job security, larger writers’ rooms and a limited presence of artificial intelligence (AI) in the writing process, according to the WGA proposals.
Andrea Navedo, known for her role on the CW’s Jane the Virgin, releases her first book this summer
Seeing limited Latina representation in entertainment growing up kept the Puerto Rican actress from voicing her true passion until later in life. Fast forward to her Jane the Virgin role, where she made space for more authentic characters in the community.
PBS’s America ReFramed to release documentary film, “FROM HERE,” which focuses on identity and migration in the U.S. and Germany
The documentary film, which is brought to us by WORLD and American Documentary, follows the lives of four artists and activists who are not only fighting to belong in the height of growing nationalism but in societies, New York and Berlin, that are exceedingly hostile toward their existence. The inspiration behind this film came from Antonakos-Wallace’s experience growing up as a Greek-American in Seattle, Washington. Raised as part of the Greek Orthodox, which tends to be sexist and homophobic, and exploring her own identity, the filmmaker wondered how culture changes and what people do with their traditions as they’re fighting for progressive change.
Alfred Fraijo Jr., East LA native and lawyer, launches BIPOC-led firm, The Somos Group
In March, Fraijo Jr. launched his own firm, The Somos Group, an entirely BIPOC-led multidisciplinary group committed to broadening “equity goals and advancing the value and expertise of people and communities that have been historically underserved and undervalued.” Fraijo Jr. exudes confidence and control, with healthy dashes of humility and curiosity as he sits and readies himself for questioning. There is a stark difference between the accomplished man today and the 18-year-old senior whose high grades and acceptance to an Ivy League were featured in a 1995 LA Times article.
Claire Risoli, dueña de Pocha LA, fusiona la cocina y la cultura mexicana con la estadounidense
En la esquina de la calle Branch y el boulevard York, bien escondido entre las casas de colores brillantes que lo rodean a cada lado, se halla uno de los mejores restaurantes de Highland Park: Pocha Los Ángeles. Se trata de un moderno restaurante mexicano, arraigado en la tradición y el orgullo angelino. Efectivamente, Pocha […]
CLAIRE RISOLI, owner of Pocha LA, merges Mexican and American cuisine and culture
On the corner of Branch Street and York Boulevard, snuggled nicely into the brightly colored homes surrounding it, lies one of Highland Park’s top restaurants, Pocha Los Angeles. A modern Mexicana restaurant rooted in tradition and Angelina Pride, Pocha LA merges Mexican and American cultures while maintaining respect for both in a healthy and vegan-friendly way. Although the restaurant was launched three years ago, the idea sprouted incidentally in January 2019 when Risoli, founder and owner of Pocha LA, added a printed-out “Pocha,” a derogatory term used by native-born Mexicans against US-born Mexican Americans who don’t speak Spanish well, to her vision board.
Latino artists, well-known and up-and-coming, owned the stage at Coachella 2023
History was made this Coachella 2023 season as “Tití Me Preguntó” singer, Bad Bunny, became the first-ever Latin artist to headline the festival, which took place in Indio, CA during back-to-back weekends, April 14-16 and 21-23.