Indiana Commission on Hispanic/Latino Affairs (ICHLA) to hold listening sessions at Goshen College
The Indiana Commission on Hispanic/Latino Affairs (ICHLA) will be holding listening sessions statewide between April and October 2019. The project is called “Make your voice heard! ¡Queremos escuchar tu Voz!”
The first listening session will be held on Friday, April 5, 2019 from 5:30-8 p.m. on the campus of Goshen College at College Mennonite Church (1900 S. Main St, Goshen, IN 46526). Northern Indiana is the initial stage of this project.These listening sessions are an initiative to identify the issues and concerns faced by the Hispanic and Latino communities from varying demographic characteristics in five areas: education, health, workforce, public safety and civil rights.
Our goals are to prioritize the needs of the Hispanic and Latino community, create awareness with local and state agencies and develop policies using the results of this research. These listening sessions will be in English and Spanish. We will be sharing the results to the community, legislative leaders and other partners who play a significant role in shaping the future success of the Hispanic Latino community in Indiana.
“We have noticed that the Latino population continues to increase in the state of Indiana. About 426,000 Hispanics or Latino reside in state, representing 7 percent of the population. In addition, the Hispanic and Latino population in Indiana is the 21st largest in the nation, so it is our responsibility to understand the challenges affecting this population” said Dolly Serrant, Director of Indiana Commission on Hispanic and Latino Affairs.
“We selected the City of Goshen as the first stage of the project because Elkhart County’s Latino population is among the largest in Indiana and we really want to get a sample representation of this community” added Dolly Serrant.
If you need reasonable accommodations or more information, contact Dolly Serrant, Director of ICHLA, at 317-232-5048 or dserrant@icrc.in.gov. Additional information about this project will be published on our website www.in.gov/ichla/