Juana Bordas
Honorary Doctorate - 2009

Ms. Bordas delivers her speech at the 2009
UI&U Commencement Ceremony Impassioned by a long-held commitment to social justice and equality, Ms. Juana Bordas has dedicated a lifetime of work and service in support of diverse, ethical, and empowered leaders throughout the nation and the world.  Whether as a Peace Corps volunteer, working with low-income women in Chile, or as founding president of the National Hispana Leadership Institute, the only program in America committed to preparing Latinas for national leadership, Ms. Bordas has forged new ground as a distinguished and international servant-leader and has paved the path for future generations of Latino leadership.

As the daughter of Nicaraguan immigrants in central Florida, Ms. Bordas understood from a very early age that women can—and must—provide support to each other in order to succeed and to institute change.  She recalls, “My parents spoke broken English, we were poor, I was small and dark—a lot of things were going on.  The thing that was an anchor for me was that, even as a young girl, I understood that girls help each other.  For everyone, there’s a family of people who support you and surround you.”

In 1977, after working her way through college at the University of Florida and earning a master’s degree in social work from the University of Wisconsin, Ms. Bordas founded Denver’s Mi Casa Women’s Center, serving as executive director until 1986.  Recognized today as the national model for women’s empowerment organizations, Mi Casa and the opportunities Ms. Bordas promoted within the organization led to a significant and dynamic shift within Latina leadership—and, ultimately, to the founding and success of the National Hispana Leadership Institute.

Juana Bordas speaks to UI&U grads Founded in 1987, and under the direct leadership of Ms. Bordas for nearly a decade, the National Hispana Leadership Institute (NHLI) has played a critical role in Latina empowerment and advancement throughout the past 20 years.  With a mission to expand Latina leadership opportunities and to provide strong, positive role models for young Latina girls, the NHLI has created strong partnerships with Harvard’s JFK School of Government and the Center for Creative Leadership to provide critical training and executive-level skills for Hispanic women.

In 1995, Ms. Bordas continued to advocate diversity leadership issues with the founding of Mestiza Leadership International, an organization that offers businesses the training, development, and strategic planning necessary to move toward a more diverse, inclusive, and culturally enriching workplace, and to seek organizational change.  Under Ms. Bordas’ leadership, Mestiza continues to guide organizations to more effective and inclusive leadership, resulting in more innovative and productive work environments.

In 2000, Ms. Bordas founded the Circle of Latina Leadership, a program designed for young Latinas who have shown the potential for nonprofit and grassroots leadership, and aspire to make an even greater contribution. To date, the program has trained more than 130 women for community leadership roles.

As Dr. Roger Sublett looks on, Juana Bordas
is hooded by UI&U alum and trustee,
Dr. Virginia Wiltse Ms. Bordas has also served communities throughout the world as an instructor, motivational speaker, and a member of integral leadership teams, boards, and advisory committees.  Living the Mestiza mission, she became the first Latina faculty member for the Center for Creative Leadership, where she taught in the Leadership Development Program (LDP).  Ms. Bordas recently served as an advisor to Harvard’s Hispanic Journal on Public Policy and the Kellogg National Fellows Program.  She also served as vice president of the board of the Greenleaf Center for Servant Leadership, and as a trustee of the International Leadership Association. 

Ms. Bordas continues to impact the Latino community, the global workplace, and the lives of women throughout the world as a change agent and advocate for social justice, speaking to groups large and small, and relaying the message that we all should be prepared to both lead and serve.  As Ms. Bordas notes, “Get busy doing something for someone else.  If you focus on helping others, you will find happiness.  Happiness comes from serving and loving.”