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LASA Trae Diversidad a la Comunidad de Pensacola |
LASA brings diversity to Pensacola community Joslyn Rosado The Latin American Student Association is an educational and diversity driven organization on the University of West Florida campus. The organization does not discriminate against anyone of different ethnicities. “Everyone is welcome, not just Hispanics,” Evelyn Keith, Puerto Rican and advisor for LASA said. “We’re trying to do what we can to make an impact on diversity on campus.” “I'm not Latin American, but I love the culture and have so much fun getting involved,” Tabitha Green, president of LASA, said. “We accept all races in LASA, just because you are not Latin American does not mean you can't love the culture.” LASA is also very involved in charities that help children and animals, such as the Ronald McDonald House, Toys for Tots and the Pensacola Humane Society. “We try to have core values to help charities,” Keith said. “Last year, we even helped the post master in downtown Pensacola.” LASA has been an official organization at UWF for four years, before LASA, it was called Hispanic Student Association when Keith was asked to be the advisor in 1999. “We thought that the name didn’t encompass everything we wanted to portray,” Keith said. This year LASA has participated in multiple charity events and other fun events, such as the Latino Festival in October, and most recently the Veterans Day parade in downtown Pensacola. “This year we helped to build the float for Boricuas Ausentes,” Keith said. “The president and vice president actually helped me build it.” In 2010, LASA received UWF Student Organization of the Year. “Everyone was so proud and excited for us,” Green said. “It was a great honor.” Officially LASA has 12 core members who attend meetings regularly and help at most of the events. They are also trying to plan an on-campus Christmas party for the students who aren’t going home for the holidays. |