Pearl Quiñones to be honored by Denver Latina Chamber of Commerce

 The Denver Latina Chamber of Commerce has named Sweetwater Union High School District Board Member Pearl Quiñones a Latina Trail Blazer in education.

 Each year, the Latina Chamber Foundation, State Farm Insurance and the U.S. Hispanic Chamber of Commerce pay tribute to women who have paved the way for other Latinos in their local and national communities. The categories for recognition are education, philanthropy, government, health care, business and sustainability.

 Quiñones will be honored at the U.S. Hispanic Chamber of Commerce Latina Leadership Summit on Thursday, Sept. 17.

 “To be recognized by such a prestigious group of women is quite an honor,” Quiñones said. “I have always considered my work in education to be so important for the young women who will be our future leaders.”

 Quiñones was nominated for her involvement in local, state and national organizations that improve access to education for women and minorities.

 She strengthened the district’s pregnancy prevention task force, encouraged a Latina youth leadership program at Sweetwater High and is a strong supporter of the district’s Compact for Success program, which increases the number district graduates qualified for university admission.

 Quiñones is an executive board member on the California Latino School Board Members Association and the National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials (NALEO). Her leadership in helping align district spending priorities with student achievement helped earn her the Tribute to Women in Industry Award from the San Diego County YWCA. She has served as a Hispanas Organized for Political Equity (HOPE) fellow and last year was one of 22 Latinas throughout the United States to be selected to the National Hispana Leadership Institute.