about carlos

Carlos Bárcenas was born in Chilpancingo Guerrero Mexico and moved to Grand Island Nebraska in 1994 at the age of 14.  Carlos quickly learned the language and culture, finding that being bicultural opened many doors that led to working in the inclusion arena.

As Carlos became more confident in being a bridge across cultures and languages, he earned his medical Interpreter and translator certification, and since 2000 has increasingly stepped into a role as a communication conduit, a cultural broker, and community advocate for those in Grand Island and the whole state of Nebraska.

Carlos served as the Multicultural at Risk Coordinator and Liaison from 2001 to 2005 for the Grand Island Public Schools.  In this role, Carlos worked with students from diverse ethnic groups and languages while simultaneously helping students, staff and the greater community better understand and navigate differences. 

Carlos served as the executive director of the Multicultural Coalition of Grand Island, where he served the community with the goals of growing cultural understanding, enriching lives and empowering communities.  Carlos has worked with people from all over the world who now call Nebraska home. To assist immigrants to transition to their new home Carlos offered English classes, citizenship classes, leadership development opportunities and assistance in finding the resources needed to succeed. Carlos also worked with the host culture (receiving community) in developing their understanding of diversity and what it means to be welcoming and inclusive.

Carlos has served as a community organizer at the Center for Rural Affairs working in the area of intercultural development. Here he became a qualified administrator of the Intercultural Development Inventory and has coached community leaders across Nebraska in their intercultural development as well as creating dialogue in organizations and communities about inclusion and welcoming.

Carlos serves as a board member for the Grand Island Public Schools and is an active member of his community.

Besides being active in the community he enjoys being a family man and along with his wife Angela they enjoy spending time as a family and traveling as much as possible!

For events, Carlos has been speaker and trainer in the area of intercultural development and inclusion click past events!