Jessica Rivas

Jessica Rivas was born and raised on the south side of Chicago to immigrant parents from Durango, Mexico. Her parents instilled in her the importance of practicing their Mexican traditions, customs, and language. Thus, she learned how to speak, write, and read Spanish before English. As a young child, she experienced the legal and social hardships many immigrant families encounter living in the shadows. From, accessing programs and services due to language, immigration status, and economic barriers. Both her parents taught her the importance of a strong work ethic and to always keep moving forward. Motivated by a sense of justice and in-conformity to the status quo, she’s committed to helping undocumented immigrants and their children thrive in their new communities and navigate their new surroundings by providing services and programming through language access. Jessica joined AmeriCorps (NCCC) in 2013, where she assisted multiple non-profits in the Midwest to build capacity in their programming and services. That same year, she was awarded the President’s Service Award for her outstanding commitment to volunteerism.

Advancing her career in the non-profit sector, she started working at YMCA of the USA (YUSA) supporting the New American Welcome Center (NAWC), which focused on helping newcomer immigrants integrate into their new communities, through direct services, inclusion programs, and community efforts. In 2018, she led a national campaign at YUSA known as Welcoming Week, where she coordinated multicultural bridge-building activities to bring the receiving and immigrant community together. Jessica designed and developed an immigrant youth portfolio, which included the creation of tools and resources in healthcare, advocacy, education, and employment access.

At FLAP, she will further the quality of life for LatinX workers by ensuring they receive equitable access to services and programs, by providing timely language assistance through her work as a Bilingual Operations and Finances Specialist; she is fluent in English and Spanish.