Six stories. Centuries of impact.
Figures of Latinidad
Meet some of the people who shaped Latinidad
About the Latinidad Curriculum Initiative
The Latinidad Curriculum Initiative brings these stories into the classroom with intention. By centering Latino histories, innovations, and contributions, the initiative helps students see themselves in the narrative of American history – not at the margins, but at the heart of it. Latinidad is a reminder that our classrooms, like our city, are strongest when every story is taught, honored, and celebrated.
The Latinidad Curriculum Initiative is funded by the New York City Council and is supported by Hispanic Federation, United Way of New York City, and the Edmund W. Gordon Institute for Advanced Study at Teachers College, Columbia University. Learn more.
Trailblazers
Financial health is at the core of a family’s ability to thrive; it affects almost every aspect of a person’s well-being and has the ability to impact future plans. HF offers a variety of financial literacy workshops focused on budgeting, saving, investing and building credit. Since 2008, HF has trained more than 18,000 individuals to help them improve their money management and budgeting skills, save money, and manage their credit. Explore these workshops and events below.
Roberto Clemente
Roberto Clemente (1934–1972), born in Carolina, Puerto Rico, was one of the greatest right fielders in Major League Baseball history and a pioneering Latino sports icon. A 15‑time All‑Star, 12‑time Gold Glove winner, and 1971 World Series MVP, he became the first Caribbean and second Hispanic player inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame after his death. Clemente was equally known for his humanitarianism; he died while delivering earthquake relief supplies to Nicaragua.
His life embodies the values of service, dignity, and pride central to Latinidad, and his legacy continues to inspire Latino communities across the U.S.
Sylvia Rivera
Sylvia Rivera (1951–2002), a Bronx‑born activist of Puerto Rican and Venezuelan descent, was a pioneering figure in the LGBTQ+ rights movement and a participant in the 1969 Stonewall uprising. A co‑founder of STAR (Street Transvestite Action Revolutionaries) with Marsha P. Johnson, she fought tirelessly for transgender people, homeless queer youth, and those excluded from mainstream gay rights organizations. Rivera’s activism is deeply tied to NYC’s history of queer liberation and highlights the intersection of Latinidad with struggles for gender, racial, and economic justice.
Her legacy endures in today’s movements for trans rights and inclusive community care.
Breaking Barriers
Financial health is at the core of a family’s ability to thrive; it affects almost every aspect of a person’s well-being and has the ability to impact future plans. HF offers a variety of financial literacy workshops focused on budgeting, saving, investing and building credit. Since 2008, HF has trained more than 18,000 individuals to help them improve their money management and budgeting skills, save money, and manage their credit. Explore these workshops and events below.
Dr. Ellen Ochoa
Dr. Ellen Ochoa, born in Los Angeles in 1958 to a family with Mexican roots, became the first Latina to travel into space in 1993 aboard the Space Shuttle Discovery. A physicist and engineer with three patents in optical systems, she later served as the first Latina and second woman to direct NASA’s Johnson Space Center, shaping the future of U.S. space exploration through leadership and research innovation.
Her achievements symbolize the expanding presence of Latinas in STEM and public leadership, inspiring generations of young scientists. Ochoa’s story resonates strongly with Latinidad in the U.S., demonstrating how Mexican American communities contribute to national scientific advancement and representation.
Justice Sonia Sotomayor
Born in the Bronx in 1954 to Puerto Rican parents, Justice Sonia Sotomayor is the first Hispanic and first Latina Supreme Court Justice in U.S. history. Raised in public housing, she excelled academically at Princeton and Yale before rising through the federal judiciary. Appointed to the Supreme Court in 2009, she is known for her powerful voice on issues of equity, civil rights, and the lived experiences of marginalized communities.
Her presence on the Court embodies a milestone for Latinidad, especially in NYC, where her story mirrors that of many Puerto Rican families striving for opportunity and representation in American institutions.
Empowering with Words
Financial health is at the core of a family’s ability to thrive; it affects almost every aspect of a person’s well-being and has the ability to impact future plans. HF offers a variety of financial literacy workshops focused on budgeting, saving, investing and building credit. Since 2008, HF has trained more than 18,000 individuals to help them improve their money management and budgeting skills, save money, and manage their credit. Explore these workshops and events below.
Victor Ochoa
Victor Leaton Ochoa (1850–c.1945) was a Mexican American inventor, journalist, and revolutionary whose work spanned engineering, aviation, and community advocacy. He patented innovations including the Ochoaplane, an early collapsible‑wing aircraft, as well as adjustable wrenches, windmills, and electric braking systems that anticipated modern technologies. Ochoa also founded Spanish‑language newspapers and fought for Mexican and Mexican American rights on both sides of the border.
His life reflects a long tradition of Latino ingenuity and political activism in the U.S., expanding the narrative of Latinidad beyond cultural expression to include scientific and technological advancement.
Dr. Antonia Pantoja
Dr. Antonia Pantoja (1922–2002), born in San Juan and later a central figure in NYC’s Puerto Rican community, was a civil rights leader, educator, and founder of ASPIRA, an organization dedicated to empowering Puerto Rican youth through leadership and education. Through a lawsuit, ASPIRA played a pivotal role in expanding opportunities and support for students with limited English proficiency in NYC schools. This expansion set the standard for bilingual education nationally. Migrating to New York in 1944, she confronted discrimination firsthand and responded by building institutions that uplifted marginalized communities, including the Puerto Rican Forum and Boricua College. In 1996, she became the first Puerto Rican woman awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom.
Her legacy is foundational to Nuyorican identity and the fight for educational equity in the city.
Latino children deserve to know their history
Soon, New York City schools will be able to access the Latinidad Curriculum. Reach out to your principal or district team and sign up to know when your school can participate.
Fellow Sponsors
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Stay in the loop as the Latinidad Curriculum becomes available across New York. Sign up to get updates so you’ll know exactly when you can ask your school to bring Latinidad into its classrooms.
Our Partners
The Latinidad Curriculum Initiative is funded by the New York City Council and is supported by Hispanic Federation, United Way of New York City, and the Edmund W. Gordon Institute for Advanced Study at Teachers College, Columbia University.
