Wednesday, June 5, 2013 (Bronx, NY) – Belkis Peña-Guante, CUNY in the Heights Senior Program Coordinator and Eugenio María de Hostos Community College alumna, and Sorangel Saldana, CUNY in the Heights Executive Assistant, were recognized on Mother’s Day for their exemplary dual roles as working parents and employees. Citations were presented to both by the Hon. Gabriela Rosa, New York State Assemblywoman; the Hon. Adriano Espaillat, New York State Senator; and the Hon. Ydanis Rodríguez, New York City Council Member and Chair of the Higher Education Committee.
Hostos Associate Dean Ana I. García Reyes brought greetings on behalf of the College and CUNY in the Heights. She congratulated all the honorees and had special words of praise for Peña-Guante and Saldana. “The University commends these elected officials and their teams for organizing such a delightful event in celebration of Mother’s Day,” said García Reyes; “We sincerely appreciate their honoring our staff members, and thank Assemblywoman Gabriela Rosa for inviting us to take part in the program.”
Aldrin Bonilla, Executive Director of CUNY in the Heights, added: “Sorangel and Belkis are wonderful mothers and employees who go beyond the call of duty to help our students and residents of the community served by CUNY in the Heights. They are truly deserving of this honor.”
Also attending this event were City Council Speaker Christine C. Quinn; Public Advocate Bill De Blasio; NYC Comptroller John Liu; Former NYC Comptroller Bill Thompson; Former Congressman Anthony Weiner; Council Members Robert Jackson and Letitia James; Assembly Members Félix Ramos and Luis Sepulveda; and District Leaders María Murillo, Manny De Los Santos, Mark Levine, Marisol Alcántara, Judelka Tapia and Julie Mennin. José Calderón, Executive Director of the Hispanic Federation, and Vice President José Davila also attended the event. The ceremony was moderated by Glennis Gómez, Chief of Staff for Assemblywoman Rosa.
Sponsors of the event included, Hispanic Federation, Consulate General of the Dominican Republic, HealthFirst, Sepia Graphics, 809 Restaurant, CUNY in the Heights/ Hostos Community College, Carolina Spa, Latin Women Empower FACES, Marisco Centro, Explora, Coogan's Restaurant, Inca Kola, Marisco Centro Restaurant, Juan Pablo Duarte Foundation, Raseni Salon, Dorka Salon, and Alberto Aroma Restaurant.
About Hostos Community College:
Eugenio María de Hostos Community College, part of The City University of New York (CUNY) system, was founded in 1968. In addition to associate degree programs that facilitate easy transfer to CUNY’s four-year colleges or baccalaureate studies at other institutions, Hostos also has an award-winning Division of Continuing Education and Workforce Development that offers courses for professional development and certificate-bearing workforce training programs. In four decades, Hostos has grown from a class of 623 in 1970 to more than 7,000 students in 2012. The college also serves an additional 12,000 students through its Division of Continuing Education and Workforce Development. For more news and stories about Hostos Community College, visit
www.hostos.cuny.edu