Interview Series -December 17, 2008
with Stephanie Elizondo Griest

Stephanie Elizondo Griest grew up in South Texas and considers herself biracial, as the daughter of a mother with Mexican roots, and a father whose European ancestors settled in Kansas. Neither she nor her sister grew up speaking much Spanish, and Stephanie shares her struggles with her ethnic identity and the stories that arise from her voyage in Mexico during 2005 and 2006 in her recently released book, Mexican Enough: My Life Between the Borderlines. 

PRE-ORDER (through December 25th)

Interview Series -December 10, 2008
with Elva Lima

Elva Lima is the oldest girl in a family of six children. Her father worked in the fields of Sacramento when he moved to the U.S. from Mexico in 1961. Her father was able to move the family to the United States in 1965. Her mother was a stay at home mother while her father worked as a bartender. 

Interview Series -November 19, 2008
with Ana Jimenez

Dr. Ana Jimenez is the Founder and Executive Director of the Orange County Children’s Therapeutic Arts Center, a community-based organization in Santa Ana dedicated to empowering at-risk youth and children with special needs through Arts, Literacy and Therapeutic programs. 

Interview Series -November 12, 2008
with Diana Gomez

Diana Gomez is the Chief of the Office of Traffic Management and a senior electrical engineer with the California Department of Transportation (Caltrans). She has worked with Caltrans for 20 years and began her career designing highway electrical systems. 

Interview Series -November 05, 2008
with Toti Cadavid

Toti Cadavid, a native of Colombia and founder of Xcelente Marketing and Public Relations, is a communications strategist with far-reaching experience in both domestic and international arenas. 

Interview Series -October 29, 2008
with Madeline Padilla

Madeline Padilla is the nationally recognized Executive Director of Publicity for Arenas Entertainment. Madeline has a particular skill in effectively reaching the community she comes from. 

Interview Series -October 22, 2008
with Silvia Martinez

Dr. Silvia Martinez, assistant professor at Howard University.  Silvia has focused her professional work on effective service delivery to bilinguals in the health and education arenas. 

Interview Series -October 15, 2008
with Dr. Ana Nogales

Dr. Ana Nogales, born in Argentina, is a clinical psychologist and founder of Nogales Psychological Counseling, Inc., and Clinical Director of the nonprofit organization, Casa de la Familia.  She lives and works in Southern California.

Interview Series -October 1, 2008
with Maria de Lourdes Sobrino

Maria de Lourdes Sobrino is Founder and CEO of Lulu’s Dessert® Corporation.  Lulu was born and raised in Mexico City, but now resides in Southern California.

Interview Series -September 24, 2008
with Josephine F. Garza

Josephine F. Garza is the Executive Director for the National Latino Children’s Institute (NLCI), the only organization dedicated solely to focusing on issues impacting Latino children and to building healthy communities for Latino children and their families.  She is Mexican-American and from Texas.

Interview Series -September 10, 2008
with Norma Elia Cantú

Award-winning author and professor Norma Elia Cantú is a Chicana postmodernist writer and a professor of English and U.S. Latina/o Literature at the University of Texas at San Antonio.

Interview Series -September 3, 2008
with Consuelo Castillo Kickbusch

Consuelo Castillo Kickbusch, Lieutenant Colonel, U.S. Army (Retired), and Founder & President of Educational Achievement Services, Inc. is an Army Veteran, Author, Motivational Speaker, and Educator.  She is of Mexican descent and grew up in the
Texas-Mexico border region.

Interview Series -August 27, 2008
with Laura Diaz Brown

Laura Diaz Brown, better known to her fans as Chef Lala, is a world class chef, author, food consultant, and business woman.  She is Mexican-American and lives in the LA area.

Interview Series -August 20, 2008
with Jamie Martinez Wood

Jamie Martinez Wood, a Mexican-American native of Orange County, California, is an inspirational speaker and empowerment specialist.  She teaches workshops, leads retreats, and gives performances on personal power, earth spirituality, seasonal living, and ritual ceremony.

Interview Series -August 13, 2008
with Arisa Batista Cunningham

Arisa Batista Cunningham, a native of the Republic of Panama, is Vice President, Global Diversity, for the Johnson & Johnson Comprehensive Care and Surgical Care Groups.

Interview Series -August 6, 2008
with Elena Díaz Bjorkquist

Elena Diaz Bjorkquist is a Mexican American writer, historian, and artist from Tucson. Elena’s two books of short stories, Suffer Smoke and Water from the Moon, are about the people in Morenci, Arizona where she was born.

Interview Series -July 30, 2008
with Lora Villarreal

Lora Villarreal is Executive Vice President and Chief People Officer for ACS (Affiliated Computer Services).  Lora is Mexican American and grew up in East Los Angeles, but currently lives in Dallas, Texas.

Interview Series -July 23, 2008
with Sandra Robbie

Sandra Robbie is the Mexican-American writer/producer of the Emmy-winning documentary on Mendez vs. Westminster, the Orange County school desegregation case.  She lives in Orange County, California.

Interview Series -July 16, 2008
with Emily Matos

Emily Matos, Puerto Rican graduate student at New York University's Center for Global Affairs, is working toward a Master's degree in Global Affairs, with a focus on Human Rights and Humanitarian Assistance.  She grew up in New York and Florida.

Interview Series -July 9, 2008
with Christina Sarchio

Christina Sarchio, daughter of Spanish immigrants, is a partner at the law firm of Howrey, LLP.  She lives and works in the Washington, DC area.

Interview Series -July 2, 2008
with Mabel Katz

Mabel Katz, who grew up in Argentina, is an internationally acclaimed speaker, seminar leader and consultant.  She is author of  “The Easiest Way,” based on the principles of Ho’oponopono.  She lives in Los Angeles.

Interview Series -June 25, 2008
with Marcela Landres

Marcela Landres, the daughter of immigrants from Ecuador, is one of the few Latina editors in book publishing, and works as an Editorial Consultant.  She grew up and still lives in New York City.

Interview Series -June 18, 2008
with Cristina Perez

Cristina Perez, the “healing judge” of Emmy-award winning Cristina’s Court, author, radio host, business owner and entrepreneur is the daughter of Colombian immigrants.

Interview Series -June 11, 2008
with Nancy Marmolejo

Nancy Marmolejo, Mexican-German Cultural Hybrid, is an Information Marketer and CEO of VivaVisibility, a company that teaches PR, media and networking strategy.

Interview Series -June 4, 2008
with Juana Bordas

Juana Bordas, born in Nicaragua, is President of Mestiza Leadership International and author of Salsa, Soul, and Spirit: Leadership for a Multicultural Age

Interview Series -May 28, 2008
with Adriana Vela

Adriana Vela, Mexican-American founder and CEO of NanoBioNexus, a a not-for-profit corporation whose goal is to promote safe and market-accepted advances in nanosciences.

Interview Series -May 21, 2008
with Manuela Bump Murillo

Manuela Bump Murillo, born in Honduras, came to the U.S. at 18, and became a successful business owner and saleswoman.  She owns a multi-million dollar real estate portfolio, including the building in which her business is housed.

Interview Series -May 14, 2008
with Susana De Anda

Susana De Anda, born to Mexican immigrant parents, grew up in Salinas, CA and is founder and co-Executive Director of the Community Water Center which serves the Central Valley of California and seeks to ensure that all communities have access to safe, clean and affordable water.

Interview Series -May 7, 2008
with María Rita Jaramillo

Maria Rita Jaramillo, serves as Senior Liaison, Community Outreach, Office of Governance and Policy, where she focuses on outreach to the Hispanic community for the National Education Association (NEA).

Interview Series -April 30, 2008
with Alisa Valdes-Rodriguez

Alisa Valdes-Rodriguez, Godmother of Chica Lit and best-selling author of the Dirty Girls Social Club was born to a Cuban immigrant father, and a mother of a variety of ethnic backgrounds.  She grew up in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

Interview Series -April 23, 2008
with Polly Baca

Polly Baca, the “Latina Forrest Gump” (in that she somehow managed to be at the exact physical location of a number of historic events including the “I Have a Dream” speech) was born and raised in Colorado to parents of Mexican ancestry, a member of the Colorado State Legislature for 12 years, and was the first Hispanic woman in a multitude of political arenas.

Interview Series -April 9, 2008
with Hope Mendoza Schechter

Hope Schecter, born in Arizona and raised in Los Angeles, was born to Mexican immigrant parents, and was a long time union organizer, heavily involved in politics and later a successful business owner.

Interview Series -April 2, 2008
with Eva M. Plaza

Eva Plaza, Partner at the Law Firm of Garcia, Calderon & Ruiz, and formerly Assistant Secretary of Fair Housing, grew up in El Paso, Texas to Mexican immigrant parents.

Interview Series - March 26, 2008
with María I. Reinat-Pumarejo

Maria Reinat-Pumarejo, a Puertoriqueña, was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize and is co-director of ilé: Institute for Latino Empowerment, an organization committed to anti-oppression organizing in Puerto Rico and the US.

Interview Series - March 19, 2008
with Sylvia Mendoza

Sylvia Mendoza, Mexican-American Author, Journalist, and Speaker is an award-winning author of both fiction novels and the The Book of Latina Women: 150 Vidas (Lives) of Passion, Strength and Success, an important historic perspective on Latino women who have made significant contributions in the arts, politics, science, and history.

Interview Series - March 12, 2008
with Naomi Helena Quiñonez

Naomi Helena Quinonez, Chicana poet and educator, is an American studies scholar and a Latina cultural advocate.

Interview Series - March 5, 2008
with Jeanette Cisneros

Jeanette Cisneros, Mexican-American and grew up in San Diego, California, is a Family Practice Doctor and Medical Director of a Public Health Clinic.

Interview Series - February 27, 2008
with Ramona Emilia Romero

Ramona Emilia Romero, born in the Dominican Republic and grew up from age 11 in New York City, is Corporate Counsel, Logistics and Energy at DuPont where she is currently responsible for legal oversight of the acquisition of transportation, distribution, supply chain management and energy resources totaling billions of dollars each year.

Interview Series - February 20, 2008
with Rocio L. Córdoba

Rocio Cordoba, co-founder and Executive Director of California Latinas for Reproductive Justice.  Rocio’s parents were immigrants from Ecuador. 

Interview Series - February 13, 2008
with Raqual Aldana

Raquel Aldana, Human Rights Lawyer, Law Professor and author of Everyday Law for Latinos.  Raquel was born in Guatemala, to a Guatemalan father and a Salvadoran mother.

Interview Series - February 6, 2008
with Nancy Rodriguez

Nancy Rodriguez, Artist, Arts Administrator and Activist.  Mexican-American and from San Antonio, Texas, Nancy is the Owner of Tochtli Angel Arts, a cultural arts management and planning company.

Interview Series - January 30, 2008
with Jessica R. Herrera-Flanigan

Jessica Herrera-Flanigan, Mexican-American and from a small town on the Texas/Louisiana border, she was Staff Director and General Counsel for the House Committee on Homeland Security at the time of her interview.

Interview Series - January 23, 2008
with Dr. Elma Gonzalez

Elma Gonzalez, cell biologist, Professor Emeritus at UCLA, and the fourth Chicana to ever receive a Ph.D. in the sciences.

Interview Series - January 16, 2008
with Dr. Nancy Raquel Mirabal

Nancy Mirabal, Historian, Scholar and Professor.  She’s run oral history projects, published extensively and currently teaches in the Raza Studies Department at San Francisco State University.  Nancy’s parents are Cuban immigrants.