Latinx Heritage Month (LHM), also known as Hispanic Heritage Month, started out as a week-long celebration in 1968 under President Lyndon B. Johnson and was later expanded to an entire month under President Ronald Reagan in 1988.

Unlike many other affinity months, LHM begins in the middle of the month on September 15. This day is significant because it is the anniversary of independence for several Latin American countries like Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua, while Mexico and Chile celebrate their independence on September 16 and September 18, respectively.

From September 15 to October 15, YES Prep will be sharing scholarship opportunities for our Latinx students and alumni, spotlight LHM activities happening across our campuses, feature YES Prep Latinx students and staff on our blog and begin registration for our annual Latinx Leadership Summit.

Annual Latinx Leadership Summit

The Latinx Leadership Summit is presented every year in order to give our student, staff and community an opportunity to celebrate and connect with one another, share their stories and learn more about their Latinx identity. This year, the Latinx Leadership Summit take place on Saturday, October 28, at YES Prep North Central Secondary, landing between LHM and Day of the Dead.

To learn more about the Latinx Leadership Summit, visit yesprep.org/latinxsummit

Scholarships for Latinx students and alumni

As we do each LHM, we will be spotlighting scholarship opportunities for our Latinx students and alumni. We invite you to share this page with Latinx family and friends. You can also follow us on social media and tag students and alumni who could benefit from the scholarship in the comment section.

To view this year’s full list of scholarships for Latinx students, click here.

LHM celebrations at YES Prep schools

• Northline Secondary – Sat., Oct. 14 – Mi Cultura Pop-Up Market
• Southeast Secondary – Wed., & Thurs., Nov 1 -  2  – Ofrenda in honor of Día de los Muertos

We invite you to come back as this list will continue to grow. For further details and updates on the events being held at your school, contact your front desk receptionist.

Further reading

• Hispanic vs. Latinos vs. Latinx Explained - Our Department of Organizational Strategy, Initiatives, and Culture explains the difference between Hispanic, Latinos and Latinx.
• Latinx Leadership Summit Leads share their Latinx Stories - Meet the team behind the annual Latinx Leadership Summit.
• How my family and culture have impacted who I am today - Tony Muñoz, chief talent officer, shares about his childhood, culture and his commitment to equity.
• Latinx Heritage Month: Book reviews on Latinx novels - YES Prep high school students shared book reviews on novels written by Latinx authors.
• Donor Spotlight – Enbridge, one of YES Prep’s first and steadfast supporters - Learn about Enbridge, YES Prep's Student Affinity Summit corporate supporter.
• Origen, Southwest Secondary’s Ballet Folklorico, connects to their Latinx identity through dance - Read about the origins of Southwest’s Origen ballet folklorico.
• Leading from my Latina identity & empowering others to do the same - Nella Garcia Urban, chief external officer, shares about her latinidad and how it's empowered her work.
• How time has taught me that my identity matters - Diana Rios, elementary executive principal shares about her journey from Colombia to the United States and how her identity amplified her work as principal.
• Talent on full display at the 2022 Día De Los Muertos Art Showcase - View a gallery of photos from the 2022 YES Prep Día De Los Muertos Art Showcase hosted by YES Prep’s Visual Arts department.

We hope you will join us in celebrating LHM via social media. Follow along by using #YESPrepLHM.

From all of us at YES Prep, happy Latinx Heritage Month!