A crisis-tested nonprofit CEO with 18 years of executive leadership — scaling a single-staff organization from $164K to $2.9M in annual revenue, building a 30-person team, and driving community impact across health, education, immigration, and civic infrastructure. A bilingual, bicultural Mexican-American and LGBTQ+ leader who brings lived proximity to the communities most in need, combined with the board governance, media relations, and cross-sector coalition experience to operate at the highest national levels. Now seeking to bring this battle-tested operational expertise and deep commitment to collective impact to a national organization, foundation, or think tank.
Executive Experience
President & Chief Executive Officer
2008 – Present
Latino Memphis is the Mid-South's primary nonprofit serving the Latino community — providing direct services in immigration, health, education, and civic engagement to hundreds of families annually, with systemic impact reaching thousands across the region.
- Scaled the organization 17x — from $164K in FY2009 to $2.9M in FY2025 (per IRS 990), growing from 1 staff member to 30+ while maintaining mission integrity and community trust through multiple economic cycles.
- Built a diversified, resilient funding model — securing support from the Kresge Foundation, FedEx, state contracts, and federal subcontracts, reducing dependency on any single revenue stream.
- Pioneered a DACA-to-college pipeline — co-architected a landmark cross-sector partnership between local colleges, philanthropy, nonprofits, and the Tennessee state government to create a sustainable pathway to higher education for DACA recipients.
- Led crisis response across multiple administrations — navigated three presidential administrations, two major federal immigration enforcement escalations, the 2008 financial crisis, and a global pandemic without interrupting services to vulnerable populations.
- Built and sustained cross-sector coalitions — forged lasting partnerships with corporate sponsors, government agencies, and peer nonprofits, embedding Latino Memphis as a civic anchor and trusted convener in the Mid-South.
- Served as the public voice on immigration and Latino issues — frequent contributor to local, regional, and national media; represented the community in testimony and advocacy before local, state, and federal officials.
- Designed and launched "Qué Pasa Si Pasa" — a comprehensive community readiness campaign during the 2025 federal immigration enforcement surge, combining legal removal defense (Aquí Estamos!), know-your-rights education, grassroots rapid response infrastructure, and a public awareness media campaign. Applied a community health worker model to train neighborhood leaders as rights educators, supported grassroots organizations with funding and technical assistance, and secured Kresge Foundation partnership support — demonstrating the ability to design, fund, and scale a rapid-response system under pressure.
- Cultivated a culture of inclusion — established "Tod@s Means All" as an organizational philosophy, ensuring diversity is embedded in operations, hiring, programming, and community engagement — not just stated as a value.
Board Commissioner, District 5 (Cordova) — First Latino Board Member in District History
2023 – 2024
MSCS is the largest school district in Tennessee and one of the largest urban districts in the nation, serving 110,000+ students across 200+ schools.
- Appointed as the first Latino to serve on the MSCS Board — and potentially the first Latino to hold local public office in Memphis — bringing representation to a district where Latino students comprise 18% of enrollment.
- Led governance reform by spearheading the reorganization of the Office of the General Counsel to ensure independence from district administration, strengthening institutional accountability.
- Championed priorities of literacy, English language learner support, workforce readiness, and juvenile justice reform throughout tenure.
- Participated in the development of Tennessee's new school funding formula (TISA — Tennessee Investment in Student Achievement), shaping statewide education policy.
Prior to nonprofit leadership, built a foundation in entrepreneurship, sales, and business development — including founding a tortilla bakery, launching and operating a Hispanic food distribution company (Merkado), managing commercial real estate, and leading sales operations in the logistics and foodservice sectors. These ventures, including navigating the realities of undercapitalized small business ownership and rebuilding after setbacks, inform a pragmatic, resilient, and deeply empathetic approach to organizational leadership.
Board & Civic Leadership
UnidosUS — Board Member & Audit Committee Chair
Memphis Chamber of Commerce — Board Member
Hope Credit Union — Board Member
Memphis Downtown Commission — Board Member
Urban Child Institute — Board Member
Shelby Farms Park Conservancy — Board Member
Alliance Mental Health — Board Member
WeAreMemphis Brand — Board Member
Education & Leadership Development
Certificate, New Strategies for Nonprofits — Georgetown University, 2019
Certificate, Nonprofit Leadership — Boston College, 2018
M.S., Leadership & Public Service — Lipscomb University, 2017
B.S., Business Administration / Marketing — Christian Brothers University, 1997
Leadership Tennessee (2016) · Leadership Memphis (2001) · Mosaic Fellow · ProInspire Catalyst Collective
Recognition & Awards
FBI Director's Community Leadership Award — FBI Memphis, 2022
NFL Hispanic Heritage Leadership Award — Tennessee Titans, 2018
Power 100 — Memphis Business Journal (2019 – present, consecutive)
Communicator of the Year — PRSA Memphis, 2017
Top 40 Under 40 — Memphis Business Journal, 2014
12 Who Made a Difference — The Commercial Appeal, 2012
Civic Identity & Citizenship
After 25 years of building a life, a family, and a community in Memphis, Mauricio became a proud U.S. citizen. He immediately put that citizenship to work — running for Memphis City Council and the Memphis-Shelby County Schools Board, and though not yet successful, those races built the civic relationships, name recognition, and political fluency that are the foundation for future public service. As a citizen, he remains committed to using his voice, his vote, and his platform to advocate for others who are still on their own journey toward their version of the American dream.
Core Competencies
Nonprofit Executive Leadership
Strategic Planning
Budget & Financial Oversight
Board Governance
Crisis Management
Immigration Policy & Advocacy
Cross-Sector Coalition Building
Fundraising & Development
Media & Public Relations
Diversity, Equity & Inclusion
Collective Impact
Bilingual English / Spanish
Federal & State Policy Navigation
Organizational Development