New Hispanic scholarship created

When Hipolito "Paul" Roldan became the first executive director of the Hispanic Housing Development Corporation in 1976, there was no training or career path. Instead, in the wake of the fires that had burned Division Street, and armed only with the commitment to help a distressed Puerto Rican community, Roldan began to figure out how to replace the overcrowded slum housing of the neighborhood with decent affordable housing in which lives and families could thrive.

Thirty years later, with a deep concern about the future of community development in Latino neighborhoods, Roldan is establishing a scholarship fund to ensure that tomorrows' leaders have the skills and knowledge to meet the needs of a burgeoning Hispanic population that extends throughout the metropolitan area

The establishment of the Teresa and Hipolito Scholarship Program for Latino Leadership will officially be announced at noon Tuesday in the Sullivan Room at Roosevelt University, 430 S. Michigan Ave. in Chicago.

Using funds awarded to him by the MacArthur Foundation "genius grant" program, Roldan is establishing a $100,000 scholarship fund at Roosevelt University. The scholarship will provide graduate-level scholarships of $5,000 per year for students to attend Roosevelt University's Chicago School of Real Estate. Each student will receive up to two years of assistance for a Master's of Business Administration with concentration in real estate or a Master of Science in Real Estate, as well as university support in their professional careers. In addition, each student will be able to intern at Hispanic Housing or a sister housing development/community revitalization organization. The program is targeted at economically disadvantaged persons from the Hispanic community in the Chicago area, particularly those who have demonstrated service to the community.

"We are delighted and excited about the program," said Roosevelt University President Chuck Middleton. "Because of this scholarship program, we will be able to prepare a more diverse group of future leaders in real estate development and planning."