Welcome and Saludos
Welcome and saludos
The Latinx & Hispanic Faculty & Staff (LHFS) Caucus supports community efforts celebrating our diverse cultures at UNC Charlotte and the region. Its members work to enhance the Latino/Hispanic community of faculty, staff, and students on campus.
The Caucus was first formed in Fall 2012. We hold meetings throughout the academic year and encourage any Latino/Hispanic Faculty or Staff (including Postdoctoral Fellows) and anyone interested in Latino/Hispanic issues to attend. For more information, please get in touch with our current officers, listed below.
Disclaimer: The Latinx/Hispanic Faculty and Staff Caucus is a voluntary, self-governing group of faculty and staff that does not speak on behalf of the University of North Carolina at Charlotte.
Give to the Sí Se Puede Scholarship
Dean Huet has issued a challenge for the Sí Se Puede Scholarship. This scholarship supports students committed to uplifting Latinx communities. Dean Yvette Huet is challenging the Latinx & Hispanic Faculty & Staff Caucus to support the scholarship during NNG. If the fund secures 20 gifts of $49 or more, a $1,000 bonus will be unlocked from Dr. Huet.
CURRENT OFFICERS
We are looking for a Communications Officer and a Social Media Coordinator. Click here to nominate yourself or a colleague.
| President | Denis Jacob Machado | dmachado@charlotte.edu |
| Vice-president | Paloma Fernández Sánchez | pfernan2@charlotte.edu |
| Treasurer | Karla Liboreiro | kliborei@charlotte.edu |
| Communication Officer | NOMINATE YOURSELF OR A COLLEAGUE | NOMINATE YOURSELF OR A COLLEAGUE |
| Administrative Coordinator | Ysatiz M. Piñero | ypineroa@charlotte.edu |
| Social Media Coordinator | NOMINATE YOURSELF OR A COLLEAGUE | NOMINATE YOURSELF OR A COLLEAGUE |
| Scholarship Committee | Carmen Serrata | lserrata@charlotte.edu |
Below, we report the current list of officers as of August 2025.
Engagement:
- 93 people in the list serve
- 73 opened the emails
- 25 voted
- 48 abstains (either through form or by opening the email and not responding)
Election results for Fall 2025-Spring 2025:
- New President: Denis Jacob Machado, Dept. of Bioinformatics and Genomics (96%).
- New Vice-presidente: Paloma Fernández Sánchez, Teaching Professor of Spanish (100%).
- New Treasurer: Karla Liboreiro, Human Resources (64%).
- New Communication Officer: Although Denis Vargas (Assistant Director of Creative Services at Student Affairs) won the election with 100% of the votes, he won’t be able to accept this appointment. We will have a new vote for this position later in the semester.
- New Administrative Coordinator: Ysatiz M. Piñero, Director for the Office of Leadership and Community Engagement in Student Engagement, Student Affairs (84%).
- New Social Media Coordinator: Although Susana Cisneros (Senior Lecturer of
Spanish, Department of Languages, Cultures and Translation) won the election with 96% of the votes, she won’t be able to accept this appointment. We will have a new vote for this position later in the semester. - New Scholarship Committee: Carmen Serrata, Assistant Professor of Higher Education, Educational Leadership (96%).
MEETINGS FOR SPRING 2026
General Body Meetings
This calendar is subject to change. For example, we will discuss if we should move the March 11 meeting to a different date due to Spring break.
| Month | Date | Day | Time |
| January | January 15, 2026 | Thursday | 12:00–1:00 PM |
| February | February 11, 2026 | Wednesday | 1:30–2:30 PM |
| March | March 11, 2026 | Wednesday | 1:30–2:30 PM |
| April | April 8, 2026 | Wednesday | 1:30–2:30 PM |
| May | May 13, 2026 (2nd Thursday) | Wednesday | 1:30–2:30 PM |
Executive Meetings
This draft calendar is subject to change. Any changes will be reflected on this website immediately.
| Month | Date | Day | Time |
| January | January 13, 2026 | Tuesday | 12:00–1:00 PM |
| February | February 4, 2026 | Wednesday | 1:00–2:00 PM |
| March | March 4, 2026 | Wednesday | 1:00–2:00 PM |
| April | April 1, 2026 | Wednesday | 1:00–2:00 PM |
| May | May 6, 2026 | Wednesday | 1:00–2:00 PM |
MEETINGS FOR FALL 2025
| TYPE | DATE | TIME |
| General Body Meeting | Wednesday, September 10 | 12:30–1:30 PM |
| Executive Board Meeting | Wednesday, September 24 | 12:30–1:30 PM |
| General Body Meeting | Wednesday, October 8 | 12:30–1:30 PM |
| Executive Board Meeting | Wednesday, October 22 | 12:30–1:30 PM |
| General Body Meeting | Wednesday, November 5 | 12:30–1:30 PM |
| Executive Board Meeting | Wednesday, November 19 | 12:30–1:30 PM |
| General Body Meeting (in-person potluck!) | Wednesday, December 3 | 12:00–1:00 PM at CONE CENTER 109 |
| Executive Board Meeting | Wednesday, December 10 | 12:30–1:30 PM |
PAST OFFICERS
This is the past executive board (until the Fall of 2025):
| President | Adriana Medina | amedina1@charlotte.edu |
| Co – Vice President | Daniela Recabarren | drecabar@charlotte.edu |
| Co-Vice President | Paloma Fernández Sánchez | pfernan2@charlotte.edu |
| Administrative Coordinator | Eva Gonzalez | egonza47@charlotte.edu |
| Treasurer | Jenny Bayas | jbayas@charlotte.edu |
Communications Officer | Denis Jacob Machado | dmachado@charlotte.edu |
MEET SOME OF OUR LATINX AND HISPANIC FACULTY AND STAFF AT UNC CHARLOTTE
If any Latinx/Hispanic faculty and staff member would like to be added to this directory, they can complete this form. Alternatively, don’t hesitate to get in touch with Natalie Ornat at nornat@uncc.edu.
MEETINGS FOR SPRING 2025
Our first executive board meeting of 2025 was virtual on Jan. 21, from 12:30 PM to 1:30 PM. Our first general body meeting of the semester will be on Jan. 30, 2025, from 12:00 PM to 1:00 PM. Zoom links will be provided via email through our “listserve” (LATINOFS-group@charlotte.edu), and you can email us to become a member.
| Executive Board Meetings | Monthly Meetings at Large |
| January 21, 12:30 PM to 1:30 PM (ET) | January 30, 12:00 PM to 1:00 PM (ET) |
| February 13, 12:00 PM to 1:00 PM (ET) | February 20, 12:00 PM to 1:00 PM (ET) |
| March 13, 12:00 PM to 1:00 PM (ET) | March 20, 12:00 PM to 1:00 PM (ET) |
| April 10, 12:00 PM to 1:00 PM (ET) | April 17, 12:00 PM to 1:00 PM (ET) |
| N/A | Moved to May 8, 12:00 PM to 1:00 PM (ET), in-person at Woodward, room 120 |
MEETINGS FOR FALL 2024
The meetings for the Fall semester of 2024 will be virtual (once a month on a Tuesday, from 12:00 PM to 1:00 PM). Zoom links will be provided via email through our “listserve” (LATINOFS-group@charlotte.edu), and you can email us to become a member.
| Executive Board Meetings | Monthly Meetings at Large |
| September 3rd | September 24th |
| October 22nd | October 29th |
| November 12th | November 19th |
| December 3rd | December 10th |
If you want to attend any of these meetings, don’t hesitate to get in touch with the President of the Latinx/ Hispanic Faculty and Staff Caucus, Denis Jacob Machado.
| You may contact Denis Jacob Machado (our President) at dmachado@charlotte.edu. |