Luis Gutierrez

Luis is the son of Mexican immigrants, born and raised in Chicago’s Little Village, where he serves as founder and CEO of Latinos Progresando. Under Luis’ leadership, Latinos Progresando has extended its reach throughout the Chicago metropolitan area, to more than 80 cities in Illinois, 24 states in the US and more than 60 countries around the world.  

 

Luis is an innovator in the nonprofit space, collaborating to build diverse coalitions across communities and across sectors: the place-based coalition called the Marshall Square Resource Network; the One Lawndale movement, which is developing a campus of community-focused capital projects in North and South Lawndale; and the Excellerator Fund, a multi-year, multi-million dollar initiative to increase investment in Black and Mexican leadership across the City of Chicago. 

 

Luis is a member of the Board of Commissioners for the Chicago Housing Authority, and has contributed knowledge as a steering committee member of civic organizations like Chicago’s Racial Equity Rapid Response Team and We Rise Together at the Chicago Community Trust.

 

Luis serves as board member of the Millenium Park Foundation, Lookingglass Theatre Company, Lincoln Park Zoo, ACLU of Illinois, The Nature Conservancy Illinois, AMPT Chicago, and HHP Lift. Luis received the Mayor’s Medal of Honor in 2021, the Leaders for a New Chicago Award from the Field Foundation in 2019, the Hispanic Heritage Leadership Award from the Chicago Bears in 2018.