SOMOS Latinx is an initiative that begins with a pre-orientation program prior to the start of the fall semester that supports students, honors their collective backgrounds, and helps them create a solid foundation to navigate life at Berklee. Sessions during the pre-orientation program include but are not limited to:
- Academic preparation: develop an understanding of core concepts in music, dance, and theater
- History and musical tradition: develop an understanding of self in Latinx and Hispanic historical tradition
- Community integration: develop strategies to navigate academic and extracurricular experiences
Berklee is a global community of groundbreaking performing artists and SOMOS Latinx holds space to acknowledge and celebrate the numerous contributions of Latinx and Hispanic heritage in the arts within North American culture. Through this program, we ignite the passion and talents of Latinx and Hispanic students, staff, and faculty who generously share their culture to make the Berklee community richer, multicultural, and more inclusive.
Our Mission
SOMOS Latinx's mission is to provide multicultural and intercultural programming that celebrates the Latinx/Hispanic diaspora's contributions to Berklee and the arts, supports students in navigating their undergraduate experience, and fosters student belonging and success at Berklee.
What does Latinx mean?
The word Latinx is a gender-neutral term that was adopted around 2004 and refers to people from Latin American origin or descent. The term moves away from the masculine bias of “Latinos” for plural and over the years has been a substitute for the traditional term “Hispanic,” that often erases indigenous and African populations.
The community of people from Latin American countries and heritage congregates multiple ethnicities, nationalities, races, beliefs, and gender identities and expression, so Berklee has chosen to adopt this term to embrace this vibrancy and make space for all backgrounds and experiences.