The awards presented to Saenz and HSF, accepted by Frank Alvarez, president and CEO of HSF and Raul Romero, HSFÂ’s Chairman of the Board, will air as part of a special segment on UnivisionÂ’s “Al Punto” con Jorge Ramos, Sunday, May 15.

"“We are delighted to present Univision’s Community Corazon Award for Organization of the Year to the Hispanic Scholarship Fund and the Leadership Award to Thomas Saenz, MALDEF’s president and general counsel,"” said Cesar Conde, president, Univision Networks. “Univision honors HSF and Tom for their dedicated service to the Hispanic community. Through their efforts, Hispanics have been empowered with better educational opportunities and improved political and social-economic lives. Both are truly deserving of this honor.”

As this yearÂ’s Organization of the Year, HSF exemplifies devotion to community service. Founded in 1975, HSF works to improve the country by promoting college education among Hispanic students. As the countryÂ’s largest and most respected not-for-profit education organization in the Hispanic community, HSF is able to award more college scholarships and educational support to Latino students than any other organization. HSFÂ’s competitive scholarships reward students that hold excellent leadership skills, personal achievements and academic success, giving students an opportunity to excel in life after high school. After graduation from college, HSF continues to support its recipients by providing career services that network students to top employers.

A distinguished leader in the Hispanic community, Saenz is nationally recognized as a civil rights attorney. He was a leader in the successful challenge to CaliforniaÂ’s unconstitutional Proposition 187 and has led numerous civil rights cases in the areas of immigrantsÂ’ rights, education, employment, and voting rights. Among many accomplishments, Saenz achieved several victories against ordinances unlawfully restricting the rights of day laborers and served as lead counsel in the 2001 challenge to CaliforniaÂ’s congressional redistricting. Additionally, he was part of the four-person executive team to Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, providing legal and policy advice on major initiatives. During his four-year tenure with the City of Los Angeles, Saenz helped to lead the legislative effort to change the governance of Los Angeles Unified School District, the effect of which has been to take the city a step closer to securing a quality education for all students in Los Angeles.