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Sister Alicia Valladolid-Cuarón,
OSF, EdD
Born March 1, 1939
Inducted 2008
Alicia Valladolid-Cuarón was raised in
El Paso, Texas, by immigrant parents who instilled in her a love
of education. She was one of the first Latinas in Colorado and
her family to earn a doctorate. She moved to Denver in 1972 and
was a coordinator of Denver Head Start, where she developed and
implemented the first bilingual Head Start program in Colorado.
She went on to hold leadership positions in both the public and
private sectors. She was the first Latina Executive Director for
the Colorado Economic Development Agency; the first Latina Colorado
State Fair Commissioner; and the first Latina Administrator of
National Hispanic Association of Construction Enterprises. She
gained national recognition as a businesswoman, professional speaker,
and as a faculty member at colleges and universities.
As a motivational speaker, Cuarón has focused on empowerment,
particularly of Latinas, through leadership development and education.
She is a founder of Adelante Mujer, which promotes the education
and training of multigenerational Latinas. She chaired the Colorado
Council on Working Women and designed a leadership program, EXITO,
to provide assistance for women in professional and personal development.
She is also one of the founders of the Circle of Latina Leadership,
created to develop the women leaders of the future.
In her fifties, already a successful entrepreneur and prominent
Latina leader, Alicia Cuarón entered the Sisters of St.
Francis of Penance and Christian Charity. This gave her the opportunity
to concentrate fully on her spiritual and personal mission to help
those who were most in need. Sister Alicia founded and was the
first director of Familia Franciscan AIDS Ministry. She established
Centro Bienestar, which became a ministry of Centro San Juan Diego
of the Archdiocese of Denver. Today the Center serves more than
10,000 families per year, offering citizenship, GED, computer and
English classes, leadership programs, and supportive social services.
Sister Alicia is a pioneer in visualizing, implementing, developing,
and institutionalizing efforts to help immigrants transition into
mainstream society. She started Faith Action, now a program of
Historic Denver, to preserve sacred landmarks in Denver. Her service
extends to many other community organizations, including the American
Red Cross, Woman’s Forum of Colorado, and Mile High United
Way, and her activities continue to minister to people across Colorado. |
