“If you told me when I was growing up as a poor son of immigrants and the first in my family to go to college, that I could rise to be one of 100 United States senators in a country of 380 million, I would tell you that it was highly unlikely. However it is the promise of America fulfilled and it is the promise that you can fulfill in whatever you may be thinking is your aspiration. With hard work and sacrifice, anything is possible,” said New Jersey Senator Robert Menendez ’76 at today’s Congressional Hispanic Leadership Institute (CHLI) Future Leaders Conference at Saint Peter’s College.
Over 200 students from Saint Peter’s College and local area high schools, including Weehawken, Hoboken, Saint Peter’s Prep, Bayonne, Harrison and more, gathered in the Roy Irving Theatre to hear from experts from the public and private sectors, as well as members of Congress and representatives of Fortune 500 companies. These leaders all addressed the topic of the conference’s theme, “Explore the World. Discover Your Future!”
“We were extremely pleased to host the Future Leaders Conference here at Saint Peter’s College through The Guarini Institute for Government and Leadership,” said Nicholas A. Chiaravalloti, J.D., executive director of the Guarini Institute for Government and Leadership. “The Institute is dedicated to providing non-partisan forums for discussion to promote critical thinking, debate and careers in public service and the mission of the CHLI Future Leaders Conference falls in line perfectly with that goal.”
The program began with welcoming remarks from political leaders and alumni of Saint Peter’s College, Congressman Albio Sires ’74 and New Jersey Senator Robert Menendez ’76 as well as Lincoln Diaz-Balart, founder and chairman of CHLI, his brother Congressman Mario Diaz-Balart and Eugene J. Cornacchia, Ph.D., president of Saint Peter’s College. The program went on to feature a variety of panel discussions and remarks from business and political leaders.
“It is indeed appropriate to hold this CHLI Future Leaders’ Conference at Saint Peter’s College,” said Lincoln Diaz-Balart, founder and chairman of CHILI. “As Americans, we often overlook our diversity and the opportunities truly available at our fingertips. This diversity provides a variety of opportunities and at a campus with students representing over 60 different countries; we have come to the right place.”
Following the inspirational program students had the opportunity to network with their fellow peers, business leaders and Saint Peter’s College representatives at a luncheon in McIntyre Lounge.