HPN FACT SHEET

MISSION:
To engage Hispanics in positively impacting the environment in which we live, work, learn and play. 

PURPOSE:

The primary purpose of the Hispanic Professional Network, Inc. (HPN)—a registered 501 (c)(3) non-profit organization—is to serve as a unifying source of information, communication and cultural enrichment for Connecticut's Hispanic community. 

ACTIVITIES:

HPN’s Annual Awards event kicks off National Hispanic Heritage Month for the state of Connecticut, promoting pride in Hispanic heritage.  The event features renowned Hispanic musical artists in concert and highlights Hispanic role models by presenting awards to Hispanics in the fields of Leadership, Community Service and Arts & Culture.

The HPN Latin Jazz First Fridays, serves as a monthly networking venue for Hispanic professionals in an environment enriched by Live Latin Jazz.  

E-COMMUNICATIONS:
HPN's main activity is the operation of its website (www.hispanicportal.org) which serves as a central online communication vehicle for the interactive posting and viewing of Job Opportunities, various Hispanic Arts & Cultural and Educational Events and important news. 

The HPN Monthly E-Newsletter and weekly HPN Special Announcements are disseminated to vast HPN E-Distribution List.  HPN’s e-correspondence, which highlights the latest information on events, job opportunities and news posted on the HPN Website, reaches 4,000+ Hispanic Professionals in the State of Connecticut directly. 
 

Thanks to a grant recently awarded by Hispanics In Philanthropy, the new state of the art fully automated HPN Website was unveiled in September, 2007 featuring an interactive events calendar, job bank, news page and other important resources.  HPN offices are in Downtown Hartford thanks to a strategic partnership with Capital Workforce Partners.

COMMUNITY BENEFITS:

HPN also aims to provide new organizational opportunities within Connecticut's Hispanic community by streamlining communications, eliminating redundancy and maximizing effectiveness.  HPN's Online Hispanic Community Events Calendar is designed to serve as a time management tool used to schedule and forecast Hispanic events and activities up to 12 months in advance. HPN News highlights accomplishments of local Hispanic professionals and provides information on issues that affect the Hispanic community.  In 2009, HPN will be enhancing the HPN Job Bank with an interactive Resume Bank thanks to the support of the Hartford Foundation for Public Giving.

SOCIAL ISSUES IDENTIFIED – ARTICULATED THEORY FOR CHANGE 

In the past, Hispanic professionals have had difficulty achieving collaborative efforts with other organizations and each other due to the lack of a common network. This problem has had an adverse effect on their capacity to create opportunities for professional development, community engagement and raising cultural awareness.  Research demonstrates that more than 60 percent of Hispanics use the Internet—that’s more than 13 million people.

More than sixty one percent of Hispanic web users are ages 34 years and younger.  In Connecticut, the Hispanic population has grown larger than the African American community to 10 percent of the population according to the 2000 Census.  During the 1990’s, four of five Hispanics in Hartford County were Puerto Rican. Now, Hispanics from other Latin American countries make up more than one-third of Hartford’s population. 

As this community grew and became more diverse, and included Hispanics from all walks of life, a medium by which to reach out and connect as many individuals in a consistent manner has never existed. Extensive Internet research indicates that a similar model for centralized electronic communications does not exist anywhere else in the U.S. for the Hispanic community.