Victor A. Ruiz

Victor is the executive director of Esperanza, Inc., with a mission to improve the academic achievement of Hispanics in Greater Cleveland by supporting students to graduate from high school and promoting postsecondary educational attainment in the Hispanic community. As a result of Esperanza’s efforts, the high-school graduation rate of Cleveland’s Hispanic youth has doubled since 2010. The organization has received local and national recognition for its work, including being named a 2015 Bright Spot in Hispanic Education by the White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for Hispanics, and receiving the prestigious Anisfield-Wolf Community Organization Award from the Cleveland Foundation in 2012. Victor lives in Cleveland with his wife and three children, and is a graduate of the Cleveland school system. He has a bachelor’s degree in English from Baldwin Wallace College and a master’s in education from Cleveland State University. He serves on several boards and committees in leadership roles, including chairman of the board of Cuyahoga Community College and of the Hispanic Alliance. Victor is also a W.K. Kellogg Foundation National Fellow.