It is with great excitement that we formally introduce Unipro Chicago-Midwest. It is the Chicago-based chapter of Pilipino American Unity for Progress, Inc. (UniPro). UniPro educates, empowers, and connects the Pilipino American community by providing a platform for dialogue and growth. We unite Pilipino Americans through collaborative action, leadership development, and advocacy. While UniPro's n
ational headquarters is based in New York, our UniPro Chicago-Midwest chapter is proudly built upon leadership cultivated in the Midwest. Our goal is to continue the work and legacy built by our MFAS/MAFA schools by providing a place for those leaders/participants after they graduate from college and/or have moved on to a professional setting. We want to expand our networks and horizons as a region by working with our chapters in San Diego, Seattle and New York to build our Pilipino American presence as a young professional body and to better our region by sharing ideas, resources and support. Our ultimate vision as an organization is a unified and engaged Pilipino America. It is a great undertaking and there is still much work to be done, and to start we want to focus locally. In New York, they have started the Sustainability and Internal Operations of Pilipino American Organizations initiative (SIOPAO), an eight-month project that will ultimately assess the current state of Pilipino-Americans in New York and address the challenges inhibiting their community. The Midwest Pilipino community faces unique challenges compared to the West and East coasts, and we are determined to create a UniPro that meets our needs. We want to make sure to focus the efforts on concerns and issues that you care about. We have created a simple online survey to begin our own gathering of data that we will use to guide our future event planning. We are here to have our ears open and provide support in hopes to help you progress your goals and to provide a home and a voice for Pilipino American young professionals in this community. We are asking you to be a part of the first-ever UniPro Chicago-Midwest chapter--to be a part of something much bigger than our individual selves. We are challenging you to take your leadership to the next level. Because you don't stop being Pilipino after college.
