Hispanic Heritage Month celebration opens this week

“Celebrating and Connecting Communities” is the theme for this year's Hispanic Heritage Month celebration, which includes several events on the campus of Youngstown State University. The event is coordinated by the YSU Hispanic Heritage Planning Committee through the YSU Office of Student Diversity Programs, in partnership with the community. The celebration runs Sept. 15 through Oct. 15. For more information, call 330-941-2087. Calendar of events: Monday, Sept. 15 to Wednesday, Oct. 15. “Celebrating and Connecting Communities.” Notable Latinos, YSU Maag Library. A display of items from the Maag Library collection featuring the important contributions of renowned Latino authors, poets, musicians, painters, etc. Contact Ana Torres at 330-941-1717 or amtorres02@ysu.edu. Wednesday, Sept. 16, 7:30 p.m. Lecture by Soledad O’Brien, Stambaugh Auditorium, Youngstown. O’Brien is an award winning journalist, documentarian, news anchor, producer and television personality. Free and open to the public, but tickets are mandatory and available at the Stambaugh Auditorium Box Office. Call 330-941-3497. Thursday, Sept. 17, 12:15 to 1:15 p.m. Opening Ceremony, Mahoning County Courthouse, Rotunda, downtown Youngstown. The event features a flag ceremony representing 22 Hispanic countries as well as musical performances. Opening by William Blake, director of the YSU Office of Student Diversity Programs. Keynote speaker will be YSU professor Gabriel Palmer-Fernandez. Event is co-sponsored by the YSU Hispanic Heritage Planning Committee and the YSU Office of Student Diversity Programs. Call 330-941-2087. Friday, Sept. 18, 3 p.m. Shaping Public Policy Using Math, YSU Lincoln Building, Cafaro Suite, Room 510. Imelda M. Florez Vazquez, a program specialist at the Texas Health and Human Services Commission, presents the different paths mathematicians can take to seek employment in public policy and their roles in such positions. She will discuss how she assists with assessing fiscal impact on new Medicaid and public health laws, providing information and advice to the governor’s office, the press, and others, as well as offering public policy proposals and research. Florez Vazquez will also share her personal and professional journey. Contact Alicia Prieto Langarica at aprietolangarica@ysu.edu. Monday, Sept. 21, 11 a.m. Edris Montalvo: Minorities in Higher Education and Ethnic Understanding in Today’s Society, YSU Kilcawley Center, Jones Room. Montalvo is an assistant professor of Geography in the Department of History and Government at Cameron University. His research interests are geography education, ethnic geography and ethnic migration, attachment, environmental science, archaeology, anthropology, history and government. He received an award for Excellence in Scholarship and Artistic Endeavor in the Educational Enterprise at Cameron University. He was one of four Hispanic scholars honored for their research on diversity and multicultural issues during the American Association of Hispanics in Higher Education in 2011. He also received an NCGE Dissertation Award in Geography for his dissertation, "The Recruitment and Retention of Hispanic and African-American Undergraduate Students in Public Universities in the U.S., 2000–2006.” Contact Dawna Cerney at 330-941-2301. Thursday, Sept. 24, 9 to 11 a.m. ECHHO College Fair, OCCHA, 3660 Shirley Road, Youngstown. The 2015 Annual Educators and Community Helping Hispanics Onward, Inc. College Fair is for underrepresented high school students and their parents to learn about the college preparation process and the Hispanic/Latino scholarships available to those who qualify. Co-sponsored by YSU’s Office of Admissions, OCCHA and ECHHO. Contact Maggie McClendon at 330-941-3243. Sunday, Sept. 27, 4 to 7 p.m. Latin Wine & Beer Taste, Vintage Estate Wine and Beer, 7317 South Avenue, Boardman. Travel the Latin World by enticing your taste buds and learning about wine and beer from Argentina, Chile, Spain, Brazil and Mexico. This event will feature eight wine and/or beer tastes and a variety of hors d'oeuvres and cheeses. Seating for the event is limited and pre-purchase of tickets is encouraged. Cost is $20 per person. Call 330-629-8080. Thursday, Oct. 1, 7 p.m. Sky Watchers of Ancient Mexico, YSU Ward Beecher Planetarium. The program, free and open to the public, will describe the different ways in which ancient cultures incorporated the sky into their religion, stories and daily rituals. Call the YSU Department of Physics and Astronomy at 330-941-3616. Saturday, Oct. 3, noon to 3 p.m. YSU Kilcawley Center, Chestnut Room, Hispanic Heritage Celebration. This is the main event of the month-long celebration. Free and open to the public, the event features music entertainment, dance performances, children’s activities, cultural displays, vendors, information tables and ethnic refreshments. Dancing will follow with DJ Kenny Reyes. Parking is free for the first 50 guests in the Wick Avenue parking deck. Advise parking attendant that you are attending the Hispanic Heritage Celebration to receive a parking pass. Call 330-941-2087. Sunday, Oct. 4, 3 p.m. 5th Annual Non-Violence Parade & Rally, Youngstown. The YSU Hispanic Heritage Planning Committee and the YSU Latino Student Organization participate in the annual Non-Violence Parade, which begins at 2 p.m. at YSU’s Williamson College of Business Administration and ends downtown. Contact Penny Wells at 330-788-0545 or pennywwells@sbcglobal.net. Friday, Oct. 9, 2 to 4 p.m. International Students Coffee Hour, YWCA, 25 W. Rayen Avenue, Youngstown. Call 330-941-2087. Friday, Oct. 9, 3 p.m. An Interplay Between Abstract and Applied Math, YSU Kilcawley Center, Ohio Room. Integer addition and multiplication are basic operations that we learn in elementary school. Luis Núñez-Betancourt, a postdoctoral research fellow at the University of Virginia, discusses their abstraction via groups and rings. Event co-sponsored by the Choose Ohio First Scholarship Program and the YSU Mathematics Department. Contact Alicia Prieto Langarica at aprietolangarica@ysu.edu. Monday, Oct. 12, 10 a.m. YSU Kilcawley Center, Gallery Room. The YSU College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences hosts Rob Alter, a Youngstown native, who will speak about his working experiences and career opportunities with the U.S. State Department. As the senior Colombia desk officer, Alter coordinates U.S. foreign policy initiatives on all aspects of U.S.-Colombia relations. He has served as an economic officer at the U.S. Embassy Caracas (2012-2015), a staff assistant to the Assistant Secretary of State for Western Hemisphere Affairs (2011-2012), special assistant to the U.S. Ambassador to France and consular officer at U.S. Embassy Paris (2009-2011), and economic officer at U.S. Embassy Baghdad (2007-2008). Contact Ron Shaklee at 330-941-3319 or rshaklee@ysu.edu. Friday, Oct. 16, 5:30 to 11 p.m. OCCHA’s 43rd Annual Fundraiser Gala, Antone’s Banquet Centre, 8578 Market St., Boardman. The Organización Cívica y Cultural Hispana Americana, Inc., a social service agency serving the Hispanic and Multi-Cultural community, celebrates 43 years of service with an adults only fundraiser at the Antone’s Banquet Centre. Cocktail hour begins at 5:30 p.m. and dinner is at 6:30 p.m. with musical entertainment. Tickets $50. Call 330-755-0430 or email occhagala@gmail.com.