New York Board of Regents Appoints Center for Puerto Rican Studies' Director of Education Luis O. Reyes, Ph.D., As New Member

NEW YORK, March 11, 2016 -- Beginning April 1st, 2016, Luis O. Reyes Ph.D., an activist and educator with over 48 years of experience, will serve as a member of the New York Board of Regents. Currently consisting of 17 members, the board has traditionally counted on one Latino member within its ranks. With this second appointment, the board will be more reflective and better able to represent the more than 25% of Latino students in New York State. He was appointed Regent At Large earlier this week on March 8, 2016.

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at http://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/8126c011-5003-4969-ad98-7c0680f6b225

Dr. Reyes has been at the forefront of the struggle for bilingual, multicultural education and for improving educational opportunities for not only Puerto Ricans and other Latinos in New York City but for all immigrant students and children of color. He has served as assistant professor in various education departments, including Lehman, Hunter, Brooklyn, and Baruch Colleges, CUNY, and at Long Island University. 

He currently serves as Centro’s Director of education. Dr. Edwin Meléndez, the director at the Center for Puerto Rican Studies at Hunter College, CUNY, congratulated Reyes, "I want to congratulate Luis on his new appointment to the Board of Regents. Luis has long been a dedicated educator and a champion of the rights of all our youths to excellent education and academic opportunities. I know he will bring that commitment to his new role, improving the lives of all youths across the state. The Board of Regents could not have made a better choice."

After receiving his MA in Spanish Literature from Middlebury College in Vermont, he completed his PhD studies in Social Sciences in Education from Stanford University. In the 1980s, he administered a federal peer-counseling project for Aspira of America, Inc. that trained and engaged Latino high school students across the United States. He served as a member of the New York City Board of Education in the 1990s, coordinated the Coalition for Educational Excellence for English Language Learners (CEEELL) between 2002 and 2009 and is a founding member of the Latino Coalition for Early Care and Education (LCECE).

“I believe in equal educational opportunity and quality education for all students. As an elected Member of the Board of Regents, it would be my solemn obligation to ensure that all adults certified by the Regents and all institutions chartered by the Regents live up to the high standards set by the Board.”

The Regents are responsible for the general supervision of all educational activities within the State, presiding over The University and the New York State Education Department. The board consists of 17 members, elected by the State Legislature for 5-year terms: 1 from each of the State’s 13 judicial districts and 4 members who serve at large.

For additional information: http://centropr.hunter.cuny.edu/

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CONTACT: 
Suset Laboy 
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