NHI announces LDZ plans for 2021, including new LDZx online program

The National Hispanic Institute has announced that its Lorenzo de Zavala Youth Legislative Session program, which teaches collaboration and public policy skills to aspiring young leaders, will commence in 2021 with three live, onsite programs, plus a first-ever LDZx online edition.

The program, known to NHI faithful as the LDZ, has engaged students in leadership education since the first Austin pilot program in 1983. It’s been a vital part of NHI programming for more than three decades, but had to take a one-year hiatus in 2020 due to the pandemic.

Students who were slated to do the 2020 LDZ had opportunities to participate in leadership symposium events throughout the summer — and now they’ll have the chance to collaborate with each other, as well as students who participated in the inaugural 2020 GDx program.

“NHI is prioritizing our in-person 2021 LDZ programs for students who enrolled in LDZ 2020, and because of the pandemic, were postponed to LDZ in 2021,” said Nicole Nieto, NHI’s Executive Vice President. “One hundred percent of a student’s tuition payments for a 2020 program, that wasn’t utilized this past summer, are transferrable to 2021.”

“We are also making special provisions in our 2021 LDZ programs for 2020 GDx students who are seeking to continue their leadership development,” she added. “If you belong to either of these groups, claim your spot right away or you may not get in! We have a lot of interest in those limited spots and will open them up after November 15.”

The 2020 onsite LDZ programs will include:

• Colorado LDZ, Colorado State University (Ft. Collins, Colorado), June 27 – July 4, 2021
• California LDZ, University of San Diego (San Diego, California) July dates to be determined
• Texas LDZ, Austin College (Sherman, Texas), July 11-18, 2021

NHI will also launch its first-ever LDZx, an online LDZ program connecting students from throughout the Americas, on July 25-31, produced by NHI Studios and sponsored by St. Mary’s University in San Antonio, Texas.

Gloria DeLeon, NHI co-founder and architect of the original LDZ program, is leading a team of NHI staff members and volunteers in building the online LDZ experience.

The resumption of the 2021 LDZ program is also allowing NHI to reconnect with host university partners in relationships that all parties have valued and cherished.

“Colorado State University is proud to be the longest-running University partnership in LDZ history,” said Leslie A. Taylor, Vice President for Enrollment and Access at Colorado State University. “Since our first program in 1989, we have been successfully working with NHI to develop Latinx leaders. We look forward to the point at which the Colorado LDZ can return to Fort Collins and until then, we will be working with NHI to support students virtually.”

“Since we were founded, The University of San Diego has been known as a place that inspires students to make a positive difference in the world,” said Stephen Pultz, Assistant Vice President for Enrollment at The University of San Diego. “We are a campus of change makers, and to partner with the NHI and host the LDZ program is a perfect fit with our mission and values. The advocacy and community engagement skills students learn during the program are so important, and really prepare them to make a difference in their communities. These are exactly the skills and qualities we look for in our own students, and that help make the University one of only 45 Changemaker campuses in the world.”

“Austin College is excited to welcome the NHI family back to campus next summer,” added Baylee Kovert, Vice President For Institutional Enrollment at Austin College. “Our partnership has spanned 30 years and helped to cultivate thousands of student leaders. Austin College and NHI share and live out similar missions and commitments to do the essential work of educating and producing the next generation of enlighted, responsible, creative people with moral compasses who make democracy work. The work done through NHI serves as a powerful launching pad for your future and we are excited to be a part of it.”

“NHI and our host institutions are dedicated to the well-being and safety of our students,” Nieto added. “In an abundance of caution, we are making back-up plans to convert in-person LDZ programs into live, interactive online experiences if conditions do not permit us to safely host our programs. We will make determinations by April 15 for all onsite programs. Policies regarding financial concerns are in our updated Parent Release.”

For more info about LDZ and LDZx, check out NHI’s new digital brochure on the program. To reserve your place in a 2021 LDZ or LDZx program, register on the NHI website.