Our Committees
We strive to create a network of Latin American leaders in order to shape the future development of the region and generate greater awareness of Latin America in our UC Berkeley community. Being a part of one of these committees allows for internal community and external impact, one of LLS's greatest successes.
Action
We strive to serve our communities here locally, but also give back to our communities in Latin America by taking action through acts of service. We acknowledge our privileged positions of power as UC Berkeley students, so if we have the ability to help out others who are not as privileged as we are then we will take action”. Action members are individuals who are driven by passion, determination, taking initiative, and serving the community to make an impactful change for those who need help in our respective communities. We work with two different non-profit organizations in Latin America that we have constant communication with. We work with an orphanage in Funsovi, Venezuela that holds about 25-3o children of different ages and background stories. The other center we work with is in Tijuana, Mexico that holds children of different ages who were all diagnosed with HIV and they create a space so the children have access to treatment. The way we are able to provide financial assistance to both organizations is through the initiative and vision of the Action Committee as we brainstorm collectively fundraising ideas and coordination of events. The dedication that it takes to be an Action core member is very demanding as it takes organization, collective brainstorming of ideas, initiative of grocery/material items outside of Berkeley (students use transportation), hands-on food making/item making, and hours of commitment. The Action Committee also focuses on Community Service Outreach in order to provide a service in our communities. It takes communication, heart, and initiative. The service provided to different organizations is personal time that a person must want to take on. Our goal this semester is to duplicate our fundraising financial assistance to the two different non-profit organizations that we work with and we will do this by having more fundraisers and effective critical thinking of fundraising ideas. We also hope to establish a community service network outreach not only for Action members but for the club as whole. We also hope to have collaborations with current affairs, community engagement, leadership, marketing, and forums!
Community Engagement
Our goal is to establish a sense of community and camaraderie within LLS as well as other organizations on campus. Community Engagement members are those who are creative, dedicated, and can take initiative. We have open minds and have the skill of adapting to any situation presented to them. Teamwork is a huge principal in this committee, and it’s essential for our members to be open to different perspectives and work with one another to create a solution. Besides doing work, we create memories together and share our culture with one another! We take charge of making sure everyone in LLS feels included as well as creating a bond between everyone in the club and other clubs as well, and we want to establish a strong sense of community so all of our members feel at home here at LLS. We do what we do because we understand how difficult it is to find a latine space in Berkeley, and we want latine students to be able to feel comfortable during their time at UC Berkeley. Our goals this semester are to have our members to create connections with new people in the club, make our community stronger, and throw more social events that include the several Latin identities from Latin America. Some past successful events have been our retreats! We all got to know each other better and really meet new people in a different environment.
Current Affairs
Our mission is to educate and inform the community about news, pressing issues, and events going on in Latin America through the use of presentations, power-points and social media. The Current Affairs committee is composed of bright, unique, and driven individuals dedicated to researching and informing the community about different topics surrounding Latin America. The committee has members from all grade levels at Cal, thus highlighting that every individual can bring forth a new set of ideas to the group. In addition, our committee members are involved with other organizations/clubs throughout campus such as Greek life and the ASUC, as well as organizations outside campus such as Smile Train. and Youth and Government. Our committee is tasked with creating presentations through passion, authenticity, and structure. No two presentations are alike in terms of themes, presenters, and topics. Our goal is to cover and inform the community, as well as the general public in Cal, about pressing issues, news, and events occurring throughout Latin America. We aim to cover diverse, underrepresented, and unique positionalities. Furthermore, we also collaborate with the Marketing committee to create social media posts called ‘Fast Facts’ and ‘Breaking News.’ These posts aim to cover topics that were not presented during the general meeting. This semester we have challenged ourselves to expand as a committee by working with other committees in LLS. Instead of working by ourselves, we now collaborate with Marketing, Forum, and Action to help create and present different presentations and posts about a wide range of topics. Future presentation topics include Politics in Latin America, the World Baseball Classic, and Languages! A successful past presentation was our music presentation which was a huge hit! Every song would bring people up from the audience to dance and even sing! However, our Halloween night is widely regarded as our most popular. The ‘La Llorona’ skit brought out laughter from the crowd, while our folklore discussion left the audience with chills crawling from the back of their spines.
Forum
Our committee is dedicated towards creating opportunities for the UC Berkeley community to learn and discuss pressing topics affecting Latin American communities in the U.S. and abroad. We are a group of students passionate about economic development and event planning. Our members are leaders who are interested in developing their public speaking. The forum committee creates conversations regarding Latin America and promotes awareness of issues outside of the Latine community. We aim to highlight the successes made by trailblazers in the Latin America community in a diverse range of fields, such as politics, sports, filmmaking, etc. Our members are vocal, diligent individuals, who work to organize our events to have engaging questions and Latin American catering. We intend on students having direct engagement with Latin American leaders and a space to learn about prevalent issues through insightful panels, screenings, and intimate discussions. We aim to hold multiple events throughout the semester and encourage members to share events they would like to see from our committee.
Finance
We want to ensure responsible and efficient allocation of resources for the benefit of all members of the club, ensure that club activities are funded fairly and responsibly, while also promoting financial knowledge and accountability among club members. The finance committee of the LLS is comprised of a diverse group of individuals with varying backgrounds and experiences. This semester, there are 5 members on the committee, 3 of whom are freshman and 2 who are transfers. The diversity of the committee is an advantage as it offers a broad range of perspectives and ideas that can be used to address any finance-related challenges that the club may face. The different backgrounds of the committee members allow for a more creative and innovative approach to solving problems and provides a wealth of experience and knowledge that can be used to make informed decisions about the club's finances. The presence of both freshman and transfer students on the committee ensures that the club's finances are managed in a way that takes into account the needs of all members of the school community. The finance committee of a school club is responsible for overseeing the club's financial operations and ensuring that they are managed in a responsible and efficient manner. This committee plays a critical role in determining the club's budget, reviewing expenditures, and allocating resources to support the club's activities and events. The finance committee impacts the entire school community by ensuring that club activities are well-funded and run smoothly. By promoting financial literacy and accountability, the finance committee helps to foster a thriving extracurricular environment and provides students with valuable leadership and financial management skills. The reason for doing this job is to ensure that the club's financial resources are being used effectively to support the club's activities and to promote a culture of financial responsibility and accountability within the school community. Additionally, serving on the finance committee is an excellent opportunity for students to develop important skills in budgeting, financial management, and leadership that will benefit them both in their academic and professional careers. Some specific goals we have for this semester are improve treasury forecast, optimize payment terms, apply for grants/scholarships in and out of school, and prepare for all possible risks.
Leadership
Our purpose is to provide opportunities for the personal growth and professional development of our Latine community at Cal. Leadership members come from different majors, backgrounds, and interests, but we are all united in our mission to make opportunities for leadership and professional development more accessible and more widespread throughout our community. We’re helping close the gap between our historically underrepresented and underserved community, and the rest of the professional world. We’re dedicated, resourceful, and committed to the personal and professional growth of each member of our community. We are in charge of organizing and hosting professional development events designed to equip our members with the fundamental skills to succeed in the workplace. We started and manage the organization’s LinkedIn profile and community newsletter, LLS Lately. We are in charge of growing the organization’s alumni network and managing alumni relations. Finally, we collaborate with groups outside of LLS and outside of Cal on topics of leadership and college and career readiness. We do all of this because we believe in a multi-faceted approach to promoting professional development in order to reach as many people as possible. This semester, we hope to strengthen our network, specifically our alumni connections. Through our efforts, we’re hoping to build a relationship that will benefit both undergraduates and postgraduates for years to come.
Marketing
Our mission is to empower the student body at the University of California Berkeley by ensuring that they are adequately informed and made well aware of the resources and community available within LLS. The marketing committee is an idea-making machine, a group of incredibly talented, motivated, and driven individuals who are all dedicated to our mission of ensuring every latine student at Cal is aware of the resources available to them and does not feel alone as an underrepresented minority. We are constantly brainstorming new strategies on how to appeal to a wider audience and find ways to be more inclusive of all backgrounds. We are in charge of marketing the events and resources diligently planned by the rest of the Executive Board and their respective committees. We manage each social media platform, maintaining a balance of professionalism, transparency, and fun within each post that best represents the standards of the club. The goal we have this semester is to broaden our outreach by launching a TikTok. We also are already planning to distribute new merchandise for our members in order to establish a deeper sense of community.
Operations
We dedicate ourselves to running the logistics of our club to ensure it goes above and beyond to meet the needs of our members. Robert, Emily, Angel, Ashley, and Joselyn are the current members of Operations. Within our committee, we all practice organizational, administrative, and technical skills. Our committee members are also involved with other campus organizations, ranging from Greek Life to the ASUC to the ASCE. Although we all went to high school in California, we have familial heritage that reaches all the way back to Mexico, Venezuela, and Hong Kong. Our committee is currently composed of four members and one committee chair. Within our committee, we delegate responsibilities to each member. The current four positions, in addition to the committee chair, within our committee are the Website Manager, Equipment Manager, Data Analyst, and Event Space Expert. In addition to those responsibilities, we are all well versed in what it means to be a Registered Student Organization at UC Berkeley, acting as a resource team for the Executive Board and other members of LLS when ethical questions arise. Since we are a brand new committee this semester, our primary goal is to establish a structure for the committee that efficiently distributes the responsibilities dedicated to it. We are also very excited to be responsible for the creation of this website!