Raul Ramos, NSHP member and contributor, won Best Novel-Adventure or Drama-English at The 2008 International Latino Book Awards. His book AMERICA LIBRE, was recognized at the awards ceremony held May 29th in Los Angeles during Book Expo America. Sponsored by Latino Literacy Now, the International Latino Book Awards were established in 1999 to honor the contributions made to literary excellence by Latino authors in the English and Spanish-speaking world.

Notable previous winners include: Isabel Allende, Sandra Cisneros, Gloria Estefan, George Lopez, Jorge Ramos, Sandra Rodriguez Barron, and Victor Villaseñor.

A new Hispanic Event Planning Online Directory was launched this week to serve meeting and event planners with a major focus on small businesses and the Hispanic market.

Latino Speakers Bureau founder, Leonor McCall-Rodriguez, has created a new website designed for event planners with a directory of keynote speakers, meeting venues and a wider variety of resources in a one-stop-shop online directory geared to showcase not only Hispanic speakers, but a broader offering of women and minority-owned small businesses.

Catherine Horta-Hayden is Assistant Provost for Academic Affairs at Towson University in Towson, Maryland. She is Cuban-American, born and raised in Miami, Florida where she began her ballet training with Ballet Etudes of South Florida. She has acquired a repertoire which includes leading roles in major ballets. She received her Bachelors in Fine Arts from Florida International University and her Masters in Fine Arts from Florida State University.

Dr. Sandra Hernandez, was named 2008 Woman of the Year by Hispanic Business Magazine. She is the first Hispanic and first woman to serve as public health director for the city and county of San Francisco. As health director, she helped to create a public HMO to handle an indigent population. Becoming a relentless supporter of the poor and uninsured is her mission.

Dr. Hernandez also serves as Chief Executive officer of the San Francisco Foundation. The foundation is dedicated to improving access and quality of health care for the underserved.. The Foundation provides aid to low income immigrant parents, foster children, nurse educators and religous leaders.

Redondo Beach, CA - April 8, 2008 --The Latino Speakers Bureau announced that the independent documentary film "The Motivator: The Business of Selling Hope", will premiere on April 24th at the Rincon International Film Festival in Rincon, Puerto Rico. For this film, Hispanic motivational speaker Victor Antonio G. and filmmaker Dan Perez teamed up for a "behind the scenes" look at the business of professional speaking and overcoming adversity.

Redondo Beach, CA (PRWEB) March 27, 2008 -- An increasing number of colleges and universities are reaching out to successful Latino entrepreneurs and keynote speakers as the choice for their commencement speeches in 2008. Hispanic speakers are in high demand as their experience appeals to graduation audiences from a fresh, previously unheard perspective.

"While we have seen some interest in the past, in 2008 the link between education and success has aroused a greater interest for Latinos and other minorities to bring their message and vision of hope and opportunity to commencement ceremonies around the U.S.," said Leonor McCall-Rodriguez, President of the Latino Speakers Bureau and long time NSHP member.

ARLINGTON, Va., Feb 27, 2008 /PRNewswire-USNewswire -- The National Hispanic Corporate Council announced its 2008 board of directors. Michelle Jordan, Senior Manager Strategic Community Partnerships at PepsiCo, Inc. has been elected Chair.

Other officers include Chair-Elect, Yolanda Medina Casey, Project Manager Visual Merchandising for Hallmark Cards, Inc.; Secretary, John F. Sequeira, Senior Diversity Advisor for Shell Oil Company; and Treasurer, Yvonne Vargas, Diversity Manager for The Boeing Company.

The Pew Hispanic Center has named economist Mark Lopez as a new Associate Director. Lopez joins the Center from the University of Maryland, where he was Research Director of the Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement (CIRCLE) as well as a Research Assistant Professor at the School of Public Policy at the University of Maryland. His areas of expertise include labor economics, civic engagement, voting behavior and the economics of education. He received his PhD in economics from Princeton University.

The Pew Hispanic Center has named political scientist Susan Minushkin as its new Deputy Director. Minushkin joins the Center from the Centro de Investigaciones y Docencia Economicas (CIDE) in Mexico City, where she was a professor of international studies and director of the first, ongoing public and elite survey in Mexico on foreign policy and Mexican attitudes toward international issues.