The Comunidad Latina Estudiantil (CLE) marked the beginning of Latino Heritage Month programming with their annual kickoff event on Sept. 15. But this year, funding looked a little different.
The kickoff included its trademark food, music and decorations. But the club had to organize the event without any financial support from the university’s engagement office.
The university rebranded the Office of Inclusion and Engagement (OIE) as the Department of Student Engagement and Leadership earlier this year after universities across the country received pressure from the federal government to end DEI programs.
The rebranding has placed limitations on the support that the department can provide to clubs focusing on cultural heritage and diversity, said Daisy Barron, ’26, the cultural chair and secretary of CLE. CLE has become more reliant on the Executive Committee as a result.
“We were able to depend on. . . [OIE] for a lot of monetary things, whereas now most of our budget comes through the EC,” Barron said.
The greater dependency on the Executive Committee has placed limits on CLE’s resources.While Barron said CLE plans to host regularly scheduled events, they have had to alter their approach to comply with Student Engagement and Leadership’s new guidelines.
Though the Department of Student Engagement and Leadership cannot provide new resources to CLE, the department allows CLE to borrow pre-existing resources purchased for the club, Barron said. This continued support has helped make up for the loss of OIE funding, Barron said.
“Overall we’ve done great. This is pretty much what it was last year. We’ve just had to take a couple more steps,” Barron said.
CLE will host more events this month to celebrate Latino heritage, including the Baila Conmigo dance workshop, Sunset Drive in Buena Vista and a trivia night.
Beyond Latino Heritage Month, Barron said CLE has taken on the responsibility to promote cultural heritage in ways that the Department of Student Engagement and Leadership no longer can. CLE now provides cultural heritage graduation stoles and continues to host events meant to promote an atmosphere of diversity and inclusion, Barron said.
“We are saying we are proud of who we are and where we come from,” CLE Treasurer Luis Chong Gonzales, ’28, said. “Our culture is so beautiful, and I think beautiful things must be shared.”
