NOTICIAS | December 2025

Upcoming Spring 2026 Membership Meeting - Please Join Us!

Please join us for our upcoming Spring CoCEAL Membership meeting on Thursday, February 27th, 2026 from 9 AM - 3 PM at the University of Colorado Denver!


To register, please sign up here

https://forms.gle/rp4K8fMNJ2sAqNy57


Agenda for our membership meeting is down below.


The theme for our meeting is Corazón y Comunidad (Heart and Community): Leading with Compassion and Care!


Meeting location is at CU Denver. Location details coming soon.


We look forward to connecting with you in the spring!

Spring Membership Meeting Agenda

Sneak Peek - January Noticias will introduce our entire CoCEAL Executive Board!

As we are revamping CoCEAL, we appreciate your commitment and dedication to this important work.


Our next Noticias in January will formally introduce each of our current and new CoCEAL Executive Board Members joining us. Below are our current CoCEAL Executive Board members!

President


Karl Diaz

(He/Him/El)


Student Success Coach



University of Colorado Denver

Secretary


Jessica M. Huerta Moreno

(She/Her/Hers/Ella)


Academic Advisor



University of Colorado Denver

 

Acting Chair for the Best Practices Subcommittee


Estéfani Peña Figueroa

(She/Her/Ella)


Program Director for STEM and HSI Initiatives



University of Colorado Denver

Treasurer


Alisya Rodriguez

(She/Her/Ella)


Pathway Programming Specialist


University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus


 


Communications Director


Vanessa Torres

(She/Her/Ella)


Guest Relations and Administrative Specialist


University of Colorado Denver


** Meet my pup, Echo, featured on the left :) **


Reminder to renew your 2025-2026 CoCEAL Membership!

 

Don't miss our membership meetings, renew your membership today!


We offer several membership categories to draw a diverse group of individuals and organizations interested in supporting our mission. Please check with your institutional representative to see if your institution has renewed or will renew your CoCEAL membership for the 2025-2026 year. (Click HERE, to see a list of last year's institutional representatives).

Individual memberships are also available at just $25. 

Click below to register!

 

Following our CoCEAL Executive Member Board retreat this upcoming January, additional information will come out regarding Steering Committees. Please stay tuned!


Questions or comments regarding Steering Committees? Please contact Karl Diaz, CoCEAL president, at karl.diaz-sanders@ucdenver.edu.

 

Dear CoCEAL Comunidad,


I want to take a moment to thank our comunidad/community for your patience during this transition period as we are onboarding our new CoCEAL executive board members and rebuilding our momentum especially when it is needed now more than ever.


The work we do is not possible without our resilient, inspiring students who we support everyday and often is the main reason why this work is meaningful to many of us.


This year has been far from easy as the higher education landscape is rapidly changing. To keep up with these changes, we may fall deep into the news and feel unsure what the next steps may be. It can be difficult to keep track of it all amidst our own individual struggles.


As this year comes to a close, I find comfort in knowing there is a larger community beyond me who care about our students, their well-being, and long-term successful careers following their education.


Continuing to stay engaged in your capacity and understanding how you fit within a larger movement to make education accessible, equitable, and a rewarding learning experience is a crucial aspect to consider.


When I first began my career in nonprofits, I remember what my mentor told me when this work begins to feel heavy; she said, "light hands make easy work." This work is not a sprint, but rather a long marathon with your entire community.


A large component of this work is strategically organizing together and intentionally caring for one another in the same breath. In our society, we may self isolate due the constant focus to survive. However, our community is where we should create structures of support and interdependence.


In my reflection in closing out 2025, I am allowing myself to continue imagining what we want for our communities and welcome the support from others as I come to realize I cannot carry it all myself.


We hope you continue to engage with us in our upcoming meeting and events as we are planting the seeds for our future generations.


I appreciate you taking the time to read our CoCEAL December Noticias! I hope you all can carve out intentional time to rest & care for yourselves and your community during the upcoming holidays.


Gracias por todo su apoyo (Thank you for all the support),


Vanessa Torres

Communications Director

Que Onda? Returning in 2026!

¿Que Onda? What's happening? was created to keep us connected by sharing news of life happenings, stories, events, accomplishments, milestones, birthdays, etc.


We plan to continue to use this platform as a way to share news amongst our communities!


Please keep an eye out for when we relaunch Que Onda? submissions in 2026.

- CoCEAL Charlas -

Save the Date: March 3rd, 2026!

CoCEAL Charlas is a space to educate/engage one another through facilitating a presentation/discussion on a topic/subject area.


We have an upcoming Professional Development Charla on Tuesday, March 3rd, 2026 from 4 - 6 PM. Please save the date as more details will come soon!


Charlas presentation/discussion submission requests will return in 2026.

In the News:

Million of Borrowers in Biden's SAVE plan would start paying under new settlement


The U.S. Department of Education announced Tuesday that it had reached a proposed settlement agreement to end a popular, yet controversial Biden-era student loan repayment plan.


By Cory Turner | Dec. 9, 2025

Immigrant Student experience more bullying as ICE raids cause 'culture of fear,' says survey



In survey, US school principals describe ‘climate of distress’ and declines in student attendance amid crackdowns



By Sam Levin | Dec. 10, 2025


CoCEAL is committed to providing our members to the latest job openings in the state of Colorado. Please know we are working hard to have the latest postings updated weekly so that members can have access to job openings in real time. Concurrently, this job board would not be possible without the participation of our member institutions and other organizations that are committed to the diversification of their workforce and the hiring of latinx people. Please feel free to share the google form link below with your Human Resources departments and other organizations that would like to post job announcements on our job board.



Community College of Denver President | Community College of Denver, Denver, CO

Director, Advising Learning & Development | Front Range Community College, Westminster/Longmont/Fort Collins, CO

Director of Registration & Records | Community College of Denver, Denver, CO

Financial Aid Advisor/Verification Coordinator | Community College of Denver, Denver, CO

Development Manager, Individual & Corporate Giving, Foundation | Aims Community College, Greeley, CO

Business Operations & Program Management Principal Professional | University of Colorado Administration, Denver, CO

Vice President and Chief Human Resources Officer | University of Colorado Administration, Denver, CO

Director, Counseling Services | Aims Community College, Greeley, CO

Psychology Faculty | Front Range Community College, Westminster, CO

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