PRESS RELEASE
WDC-04-2020
5 February 2020
WASHINGTON, D.C.– The Filipino Young Leaders Program (FYLPRO), a joint initiative with the Philippine Embassy in Washington, D.C. and the Ayala Foundation, Inc., is pleased to announce its 2020 – 2021 Executive Committee and Board of Directors.
Executive Committee:
The Honorable Joshua Ang Price ‘18, President (Little Rock, AR)
Louella Cabalona ’12, Vice President (Chicago, IL)
Major Charlynne McGinnis ‘18, Secretary (Honolulu, HI)
Melissa Palma, MD, ’18, Treasurer (Chicago, IL)
Board of Directors:
Darell Artates, Ex-Officio (Washington, D.C.)
JR Calanoc ‘12, Immediate Past President (San Francisco, CA)
Jen Coliflores, Esq., ’15 (Boston, MA)
Krystle Canare ’19 (Washington, D.C.)
Tony DelaRosa ’18 (Miami, FL)
JP Ferrer ’14 (Chicago, IL)
Donny Feliciano Rojo ’16 (San Francisco, CA)
Lakhi Siap ’15, Immersion Program Co-Chair (Chicago, IL)
Leezel Tanglao ’19 (New York City, NY)
The new leadership will assume their roles effective 5 February, 2020, taking the helm of the nonprofit FYLPRO to fulfill its mission to identify young Filipino-American leaders and reconnect them with their cultural heritage and history; provide professional development to empower them to positively impact their communities; and give them the tools and networks to nurture and grow Philippines-US relations in the areas of government, business, and philanthropic and humanitarian initiatives.
“It is truly wonderful to see young Filipino leaders continue to embody the spirit and pride of being a Filipino here in the United States. The future is bright for FYLPRO and the communities they are a part of”, said Philippine Ambassador to the United States Jose Manuel G. Romualdez in a statement.
“I am extremely proud of FYLPRO’s achievements in 2019,” said outgoing President JR Calanoc. “As the organization quickly nears 100+ delegates, it is even more critical to engage alumni, strengthen operations, fundraise, and improve on the immersion program. Having had the opportunity to work with the incoming leadership last year, I feel confident that they will lead FYLPRO to new heights.”
Incoming FYLPRO President, The Honorable Joshua Ang Price, is the first Filipino American (and first Asian American) Election Commissioner for Pulaski County, Arkansas – the most populous county in the state with 400,000 residents and home to its capital city of Little Rock. He is the only elected official of Filipino-American heritage in the state of Arkansas and one of only three AAPI elected officials in the state.
He is joined by Vice President Louella Cabalona, an artist, lead singer of SamaSama Project and Senior Manager for Analytics at Blue Cross Blue Shield who was a member of the very first batch of FYLPRO delegates.
US Air Force Major Charlynne McGinnis, a decorated officer with extensive experience in the Asia-Pacific region; and Dr. Melissa Palma, a physician who passionately works to advance public health in underserved populations will serve their second terms as Secretary and Treasurer, respectively. The members of the Board of Directors are comprised of FYLPRO alumni from across the nation in multiple industries including business, banking, nonprofits, education, journalism and law. Along with representatives from the Philippine Embassy and Ayala Foundation, Inc., this body will advise and support the executive committee during their terms in office.
Incoming President Joshua Ang Price states, “FYLPRO has grown tremendously in this past year under JR Calanoc’s leadership, and I am honored to serve as the president this year and work with our 84 alumni to empower our communities as we recognize the longstanding friendship between Filipinos and Americans. There are currently over 4 million Filipino-Americans in our nation, and one of FYLPRO’s main goals this year is to make sure our communities are properly represented by encouraging them to participate in the US Census and register to vote in the upcoming 2020 Elections. I know that with this outstanding team at the helm of FYLPRO, the sky is the limit in how we can positively impact our Filipino communities here in the U.S. and in the Philippines.”
“To lead this outstanding group of Filipino American Leaders is a great honor and privilege, and I thank my fellow FYLPRO alumni for their trust,” said 2020 Vice President Louella Cabalona. “I’ve seen the growth of this organization over the past eight years and am excited to use my purpose, experience and puso(heart) to work with our leadership to further FYLPRO’s mission and maximize our impact in the Filipino and Filipino-American communities we serve.”Established in 2012 by the Philippine Embassy in the United States in cooperation with the Ayala Foundation Inc. (AFI), FYLPRO annually identifies outstanding young professionals in the Filipino communities across the United States and provide them invaluable community, business, and government insights and access to a distinguished network captains of industry and government. For more information, please visit www.fylpro.org. ###