The League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) was founded in Corpus Christi, Texas in 1929, with the goal of improving life for the Hispanic population of the United States. It remains America’s oldest surviving Latino civil rights organization. Today, cities across the nation and in Puerto Rico host LULAC councils, community technology centers, and, as is the case in Philadelphia, National Educational Services Centers.

 

LULAC’s focus is primarily on education, and to further that specific aim, it established its LULAC National Educational Services Centers in several cities in 1973. These centers are designed to prepare Hispanic youth for college with counseling and financial services. The Philadelphia center (LNESC Philadelphia) was organized in 1974. It services the community with summer camps, youth employment services, and nationally recognized programs such as Upward Bound.