ORLANDO, Fla. \u2014\u00a0Every year, thousands of immigrants arrive in the United States with backgrounds in fields like engineering, medicine and nursing \u2014 only to face the reality of starting over in a new country.<\/p>\n
The Hispanic Federation<\/a> is helping those skilled professionals reclaim their careers by guiding them through the certification process in the United States. Its Leadership and Enhancement Development (LEED) program gives newcomers the tools to reenter their fields of expertise while contributing to the communities they now call home.<\/p>\n What You Need To Know<\/p>\n Leaders at the Hispanic Federation are giving newcomers the tools to reenter their fields of expertise while contributing to the communities they now call home Over the past two years, the LEED program has helped more than 100 individuals<\/p>\n One of those professionals is Jos\u00e9 Solorzano, a Venezuelan engineer whose journey brought him from mechanical maintenance work to a new life in the U.S. as an electrician.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen you want something, you can start to reach who can help,\u201d Solorzano said.<\/p>\n He moved to the U.S. in April 2022, leaving behind his career in Venezuela.<\/p>\n \u201cApril 15, almost four years,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Although he arrived with legal documents and engineering experience, U.S. industry standards required new certifications \u2014 particularly in specialized fields like heating, ventilation and air conditioning and electrical work.<\/p>\n \u201cI can use my documents here,”\u00a0Solorzano said. “It\u2019s legal for the United States. However, it\u2019s a special activity, maintenance. I need special certifications about electricity, about HVAC.\u201d<\/p>\n To get those certifications, Solorzano turned to the LEED program run by the Hispanic Federation, the largest Latino nonprofit umbrella organization in the country. It has a regional office in Orlando<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cAnd what we do with LEED is take that experience, that knowledge that comes from our countries and put it into work here. That\u2019s magical,\u201d said Laudi Campo, Florida state director for the Hispanic Federation.<\/p>\n Participants commit to a one-year program, which includes resume workshops, certification guidance and job application support. English classes, both in group and one-on-one formats, are also offered as part of the curriculum.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen you think about engineers, doctors and nurses and people that had those jobs in their countries and now they\u2019re here doing over Amazon, which is great, is a job. But that knowledge, we\u2019re trying to put it into the community,\u201d Campo said.<\/p>\n The LEED program also provides coaching on adapting to the U.S. professional environment.<\/p>\n \u201cWe train them in becoming professionals again in their fields and we train them through certifications, coaching on how to understand the how you work here, the professional environment in the U.S.,\u201d said Freddie Agrait, director for digital initiatives at the Hispanic Federation.<\/p>\n Over the past two years, the LEED program has helped more than 100 individuals, including Solorzano. He took English classes and completed an electrical certification program, using his engineering foundation.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s only a little hard, but it\u2019s possible, OK, because when you want some, you can start to reach who can help, so in this way, I found the Hispanic Federation ,for example. When I know them, I started to get a lot of information, and when you can read this information, you can get motivation to advance,\u201d Solorzano said.<\/p>\n
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With a regional office in\u00a0Orlando, the group offers the Leadership and Enhancement Development program to help immigrants return to their professional careers
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Participants commit to a one-year program, which includes resume workshops, certification guidance and job application support<\/p>\n