Adam Chavarria
Executive Director, White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for Hispanic Americans

Adam Chavarria joined the White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for Hispanic Americans as Associate Director in June 2001. He presently serves as the Executive Director, a position he was appointed to by the Bush Administration in December 2003. In this capacity, he is responsible for directing the efforts of the White House Initiative in engaging Hispanic parents, families, and entire communities across the nation as active participants in improving the academic achievement of Hispanic Americans.

Prior to his appointment, Mr. Chavarria served for more than eight years as the Executive Director of the Hispanic College Fund (HCF), a national non-profit organization founded by Hispanic business leaders in 1993. Mr. Chavarria headed HCF, located in Washington, D.C., since its inception during which time more than one million dollars was awarded in scholarships to over 600 deserving Hispanic students enrolled in colleges and universities throughout the country. As Executive Director, he led the organization from start-up to a successful national scholarship-granting organization. In the process, he forged lasting partnerships with corporations, higher education institutions, and the Hispanic business community.

Prior to accepting this assignment, Mr. Chavarria was a consultant in Dallas. While in Dallas, he also served as Vice President with SER-Jobs for Progress, a national employment and training organization.

A native of Harlingen, Texas, Adam was the first in his family to earn an undergraduate and graduate degree. He received a Bachelors degree in Political Science and a Masters in Public Administration from the University of Minnesota.

Mr. Chavarria has been listed in Who's Who Among Hispanic Americans in 1991 and has held memberships with the Dallas Hispanic Chamber of Commerce and the Dallas Association of Mexican American Professionals. As a graduate student, he was selected to attend the United Nations' Conference on Trade and Development in Geneva, Switzerland. He has served as an active member of the U.S. Senate Republican Conference Task Force on Hispanic Affairs Advisory Committee since 1991.