Hispanic Times Network

Escuchame.org: An Online Virtual Community For Latinas And Latina Supporters

A virtual community where Latina women could network, exchange ideas and collaboratively present themselves to broader markets is what Escuchame.org is all about.  The organization exists for Hispanas to speak out, share their knowledge and expertise and overcome negative stereotypes.  Its mission is to change the way the world views Hispanics by breaking stereotypes, one Latina at a time.

The online community has two membership components.

Everyone who joins Escuchame.org is a community member. Membership is free and provides access to the site, which provides informational videos, blog posts and practical advice by featured experts.

Featured experts are those individuals who pay a nominal membership fee to highlight their particular expertise, market their products/services and be featured in a speaker’s bureau promoted by Escuchame.

Escúchame organizes, showcases, and promotes Latinas as experts, entrepreneurs, speakers, artists, activists and writers. Here, Smart Latinas build their brands, share their knowledge and profit from their expertise while positioning themselves as assets and leaders in the global community.

The Community also welcomes Latino Supporters: those who, regardless of age, race or gender, want to tap into the pool of Latina talent. Latino Supporters have complete access to the website: view content, register for events and interact with other community members and experts.

For more information, visit them by clicking here.

Shakira: Original, Beautiful and Latina......Here are 56 Seconds of Pure Bliss!

Latina singer, songwriter, musician, and a seven-time Latin Grammy winner, will be honored Nov. 9 at the 12th annual Tribute Gala in Las Vegas for her artistic and philanthropic contributions. Friends and notable artists will salute her with their own versions of her songs during the gala.  Shakira is up for three awards, including album of the year, a day later at the Latin Grammys.  The 34-year-old Latina becomes the youngest person of the year to receive the tribute.  Demonstrating her vocal ability with rock and roll, Latin and Arabic influences with her own original twist on belly dancing, she has become the second most successful female Latin singer after Gloria Estefan, having sold over 60 million albums worldwide according to Sony Music Entertainment.  Take a look at 56 seconds of pure video bliss!

Demi Lovato, Gives an Incredible Powerful Performance. And Yes, She is a Latina!

Demi Lovato was born in Dallas, Texas on August 20, 1992  to Patrick Lovato and Dianna Hart de la Garza. She is of Mexican, Irish, and Italian descent. Here she is at the Ellen Show where the beautiful Demi Lovato gave an incredibly powerful performance of "Skyscraper" from her new album, "Unbroken," which was just released on September 20.  She describes her album as having a more soulful and R&B inspired sound.  Based on this performance, she was right on the money with her assessment.  The song has a great message about perseverance and survival. You do not want to miss this song -- you will love it.....it's amazing!

Hispanic Education in Crisis: A Very American Problem

(HISPANIC TIMES EDUCATION) - According to an article by Steve Kingstone and Zoe Conway of the BBC News, Latinos from Kindergarten to University levels are falling behind when it comes to education.

They pointed to a White House report published in April which states that less than 50% of Latino children are enrolled in pre-school; just 50% earn their high school diploma on time and, those who do are only half as likely as their peers to be prepared for college. Just 13% have a degree.

Latinos are the youngest and fastest growing group in the country.  The community makes up 16% of the population now and will account for 29% of the population by 2050.  With these numbers, the United States is in for big world of hurt if the education challenge facing Latinos is not addressed head-on.

The unique problems facing the Latino community today as highlighted by the authors are:

1. Difficulty of accessing high quality schooling
2. Language barrier
3. Hispanic mothers have far less education than their counterparts in other ethnic groups
4. Formal education is not as much of a priority in Latin America as it is in the US
5. Parents not pushing their children to succeed or intimidated by the school system
6. Undocumented parents are reluctant to access the full range of support services available for their children out of fear of the authorities

With the Hispanic American population expected to account for 29% of the American population by 2050, President Obama is right when he says,

"This is not just a Latino problem; this is an American problem. We've got to solve it because if we allow these trends to continue, it won't just be one community that falls behind - we will all fall behind together."

To read the full article, click here.

Siempre Mujer Magazine Honors Inspiring Latinas. Get To Know The Honorees Here!

(HISPANIC TIMES LATINA) - For the 6th year in a row, Siempre Mujer magazine honors "Always Inspiring" Hispanic women in its signature Siempre Inspiran October/November feature. The 2011 honorees –Selena Gomez, Pamela Silva Conde, Ana Maria Irazabal, Barbara Palacios, Angelina Ramirez, and Virginia Isaias – were chosen for their hands-on commitment to important causes in the Hispanic community.

Launched in September 2005, Siempre Mujer is the first-ever Spanish-language lifestyle publication for Hispanic women living in the United States. Published by Meredith Corporation (NYSE: MDP), Siempre Mujer reflects the lifestyles, aspirations and dreams of Hispanic women who keep their traditions alive and embrace new American values. Siempre Mujer helps the Hispanic woman navigate this new culture by covering the worlds of: Home decor; fashion and beauty; food and entertaining; family and parenting; culture and entertainment; relationships and self-development; health and fitness; and finance. The bi-monthly national magazine has a rate base of 500,000.

To access the online version of Siempre Mujer, go to SiempreMujer.com.

Sirius XM Radio Celebrates Hispanic Heritage Month With Gloria Estefan As The Program Host

(HISPANIC TIMES MUSIC) - Sirius XM Radio announced that it will celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month with performances, interviews and specials with many of today's hottest Latin artists hosted by the "Queen of Latin Pop," Gloria Estefan, now through Saturday, October 15 on SiriusXM's Caliente, channel 150.

In addition to hosting the month of programming, Estefan's most recent Las Vegas concert will be broadcast in its entirety on Sunday, September 25, at 4:00 pm ET.

For more information, please visit www.siriusxm.com.

Are Latinos Bringing Down The National SAT College Entrance Exam Scores?

(HISPANIC TIMES EDUCATION) - Scores on the critical reading portion of the SAT college entrance exam fell three points to their lowest level on record last year, and combined reading and math scores reached their lowest point since 1995.

The College Board, which released the scores Wednesday, said the results reflect the record number of students from the high school class of 2011 who took the exam and the growing diversity of the test-taking pool - particularly Hispanics. As more students aim for college and take the exam, it tends to drag down average scores.

The relatively poor performance on the SATs could raise questions whether reading and writing instruction need even more emphasis to accommodate the country's changing demographics.

Roughly 27 percent of the 1.65 million test-takers last year had a first language other than English, up from 19 percent just a decade ago.

Some educators believe that the expanding Latino population was a factor, as well as greater outreach to get minority students to take the test. 

Franchise4Hispanics.com to Reach Those Hispanic Entrepreneurs That Are English-Preferred

(HISPANIC TIMES BUSINESS) -- BuscaTuFranquicia.com is pleased to announce that they have launched Franchise4Hispanics.com, a full English-language version of the company's highly praised website. The Spanish-language version of the website was initially launched in mid-February 2010 and has quickly become the leading franchise opportunities directory for US Hispanics.

With this new website development, BuscaTuFranquicia.com now allows Hispanic entrepreneurs, regardless of their language preference, to connect directly with franchise companies that are interested in recruiting Hispanic franchisees. Since its initial launch in 2010, thousands of leads have registered monthly by BuscaTuFranquicia.com from 47 of the 50 states, including Florida, Texas, California, New York, Georgia, New Jersey, Illinois and Virginia. Now, with the new addition (Franchise4Hispanics.com), BuscaTuFranquicia.com expects a rise in the amount of traffic and the number of prospects coming from English-preferred and English-dominant Hispanic entrepreneurs.

According to Jose Torres, Principal with BuscaTuFranquicia.com, "Latinos represent by far the fastest growing segment of the US population. With Franchise4Hispanics.com, we can now reach the entire spectrum of Hispanic entrepreneurs, regardless of their language preference or dominance when they are doing their Internet search to find best franchise opportunities."

BuscaTuFranquicia.com / Franchise4Hispanics.com feature some of the very best franchise and business opportunities for Hispanics in various sectors. Prospects can search by franchise category, by State, and by level of investment to learn more information about what, how, and where to open their business.

If you're a US Hispanic or Latino, have an entrepreneurial mind and are searching for the right franchise, view our list of top franchise opportunities for Hispanics. If you're a franchise and trying to boost your franchise sales among this fast growing market, contact BuscaTuFranquicia.com to receive advertising opportunities.

About BuscaTuFranquicia.com / Franchise4Hispanics.com:

BuscaTuFranquicia.com was launched by MFV Expositions and Hispanic Online Corp. in 2010 and has quickly become the leading franchise opportunities directory for US Hispanics. With Franchise4Hispanics.com, the Group now reaches the entire spectrum of US Hispanics, which accounts to 50.5 million according to the most recent US Census. For more information visit: www.BuscaTuFranquicia.com or www.Franchise4Hispanics.com

Boxer Victor Ortiz Explains In His Own Words What Happened In The Recent Controversial Fight - See Video!

(HISPANIC TIMES SPORTS) - Controversial fight between Mayweather and Ortiz.   Ortiz did give a head butt and did receive the worst of it but eventually was the recepient of what some call a disgraceful sucker punch from Mayweather to knock Ortiz out.  Check out the after fight interview in Ortiz' own words.

Latino In America 2 "In Her Corner": Featuring A Latina Boxer Who Wins Your Heart!