The Spanish American Civic Association announced this week that Jose Lopez is its new chief executive officer.
Lopez took over the position July 1, the nonprofit said. He succeeds SACA founder and CEO Carlos Graupera, who announced last year he would be stepping down. Graupera is shifting into a new role as CEO of the Tec Centro Workforce Network, which is working with organizations in nearby cities to found bilingual technical education centers modeled on SACA’ Tec Centro in Lancaster.
Lopez pursued a career in banking and finance before being named SACA’s president in 2020.
“I want to preserve and nourish the best characteristics of SACA, which is quite simply making sure that everybody gets a fair shake in the American experiment,” he said in a statement.
“… Looking to the next chapter, I want to continue to move toward being known as a fully-inclusive organization that is not just for one demographic, but that truly represents the beautiful diversity of the City of Lancaster.”
Graupera said he is placing SACA “in the hands of a younger generation to carry the torch while I continue to do what I’ve always done, now with a slightly different focus.”
Lopez is two decades younger than Graupera, who is in his early 70s.
SACA is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year. Besides workforce development, its initiatives include SACA Development, which builds and renovates affordable housing and created the Conestoga Plaza shopping center on South Duke Street; Nuestra Clinica, a mental health and addiction outpatient clinic; the Luis Munoz Marin Senior Center; and the bilingual radio station WLCH Radio Centro.
