A fraternal responsibility
Hector Batista’s first experience in community service dates to when he was 15.
“I was a high school kid in Brooklyn, and we had a park that needed to be fixed in our neighborhood,” said Batista, CEO of Big Brothers Big Sisters of New York City.
After some research, he wrote to Herman Badillo, the nation’s first Puerto Rican-born congressman, telling him that the neighborhood needs the park — “My friends and I played there,” he said.
“I couldn’t believe he called me — I was a young kid,” said Batista, who then met with the congressman. “He told me ‘I can help you, but you need to be part of the solution.’”
Batista and his friends participated in a campaign and eventually got the funding to renovate the park.
He was then offered an internship at Badillo’s office. From that day, Batista said, “my whole career has been about improving the lives of people in New York City.”
The early experience compelled him to try and change other people’s lives for the better and to guide the next generation.
“I was lucky enough to have mentors like Badillo in my life,” he said. “What I want to do is to really make a difference in a young person’s life.”
Batista amplifies his commitment to youth and education by extensive involvements with educational institutions: he is on the boards of St. Francis College and Bishop Loughlin High School — both alma maters. He also is a member of the community advisory boards of the Spanish-language newspaper El Diario/La Prensa and the city’s Young Men’s Initiative, the latter among the nation’s most comprehensive efforts to tackle the broad disparities slowing the advancement of African-American and Latino young men.
At Big Brothers Big Sisters, Batista has led the expansion of a number of the organization’s key programs, including the nonprofit’s education initiative, which offers academic enrichment programs, including college-readiness workshops and computer tutoring stations; and the Workplace Mentoring Program, a collaborative effort between schools and corporations that introduces students to the world of business through on-site, one-to-one mentoring from employees of partnering companies, including Goldman Sachs, American Express and Mt. Sinai Hospital.
The organization has also expanded its physical operations in all five boroughs under his leadership.
“The most important thing that we could do is to help young people find their ways in life,” said Batista. “Helping a young person get from one point to the other is one of the most rewarding things that you could do. That’s why I love this job.”