Latino Heritage Month is a time to celebrate the contributions and importance Hispanics bring to Iowa State and the United States.

Thursday marked the beginning of Latino Heritage Month here at Iowa State and in the United States.

The Latino Heritage Committee has planned this year’s celebration at Iowa State. The month is filled with speakers and events to celebrate and inform the community on Latin culture. Many new speakers and events have been added to this year’s celebration. This year, the group has also worked to bring more attention to events.

Gerardo Garcia, sophomore in pre-industrial design, is the current president of the Latino Heritage Council.

“This year we created a Latino Heritage Month Calendar to get the word out about events,” Garcia said.

The poster is displayed all over campus with the different events, lectures and activities planned for the month.

“I want for the events this year to be more well known,” Garcia said. “Another goal I have is for the events to educate Iowa State students on not just one issue, but many.”

Friday is the celebration of Mexico’s Independence Day. A celebration is scheduled at the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Ames, 1015 N. Hyland Ave. The event begins at 8:30 p.m. and will have food, music and traditional dances all for $7 a person.

All are encouraged to attend the many different events put on throughout the month. For more information on Mexico’s Independence Day celebration visit the Grito de Independencia event page on Facebook.