Students representing Hispanic organizations from across campus met yesterday to elect new officers for the 2003-2004 year to the University-wide Council of Hispanic Organizations.
UCHO is an umbrella organization that works to create a dialogue between organizations on campus, said Erica Lerma, UCHO chairwoman.
“The group encompasses unifying grounds for all Latino organizations on campus,” Lerma said.
This year’s elections were the first since changes were made to the UCHO constitution to make it a more democratic organization, Lerma said.
“We replaced the positions of president and vice president with chair and vice chair to make a more egalitarian organization,” Lerma said.
Eight candidates ran for the positions of chair, vice chair, secretary and treasurer. Each candidate was allowed to display their ideas in a one-minute presentation to the council.
Maria De Cambra-Gonzalez, a sophomore in political science, was elected by the council as the next chairwoman of UCHO.
“I believe that the Latino community can do a lot better, and I believe that we can be heard more,” De Cambra-Gonzalez said.
De Cambra-Gonzalez said that she thinks that there are many things that can be changed while she is chairwoman to get their voices heard.
Doraly Salazar, a senior in textiles and clothing, was elected as the next secretary for the organization.
The council re-elected Joel Diaz as treasurer of UCHO for the upcoming year.
“We have all seen that he is very dedicated and organized,” said council member Megan Gosser. “He started with nothing, and built it up to what it is now.”
UCHO is made up of representatives from Alpha Psi Lambda, the Association de Estudiantes Mexicanos, Canto Latino, Foclor Hispano, Hispanic Business Student Association, the Hispanic Graduates Association, the Hispanic Organization for Texas Students, and the Organization for Hispanic Students in Engineering and Architecture.
The new officers’ terms will begin summer quarter.
