UMOS Names New President/CEO

Jose Martinez, currently UMOS Interim CEO, has been selected by the UMOS Board of Directors to become the next President and Chief Executive Officer of UMOS. He will now oversee all UMOS program divisions, administrative supportive services, strategic planning, special events, advocacy, and legislative efforts. Martinez will assume his new role on September 1, 2024.

“These are exciting times for UMOS,” says Ben Obregon, UMOS Board Chair. “I, and the board look forward to working closely with Jose to chart our course for the future.”

Jose Martinez has been with UMOS for 28 years. Previously he had held the positions of Director of Child Development, W-2 Director, VP, Farmworker & Community Based Services, Senior Vice President, Farmworker & Community Based Services and Chief Operating Officer.

“I want to thank the UMOS board for their vote of confidence, and I look forward to the challenge of creating and executing a vision for the next 5 years, and beyond.

Recently, Martinez was instrumental in securing a five-year, $25 million Migrant and Seasonal Head Start program grant in South Texas, as well as a two-year, thirteen-state, $56.9 million USDA Farm and Food Worker Relief (FFWR) Program grant. Within the last week UMOS was awarded an additional $30 million in USDA funding to serve another 42,000 farmworkers and meatpackers in eleven additional states.

With a staff of over 800, and projected annual revenues in excess of $100 million, UMOS currently operates 54 programs in six core states: Florida, Illinois, Missouri, Minnesota, Texas, and Wisconsin.

“My immediate plans are to continue to operate as a performance-based, data-driven, and customer-focused non-profit corporation to ensure stakeholder’s confidence in our future endeavors,” says Martinez. “I also plan to invest in infrastructure, employee growth, and enhance financial planning and analysis, Maritnez added.”

UMOS was incorporated in 1965. At that time UMOS was a single-focused, single state, migrant farmworker serving non-profit organization only. Today, UMOS is a multi-state corporation serving diverse populations with diverse programs. For fifty years, UMOS was led by Lupe Martinez, who now holds the title of President Emeritus, UMOS.

“Jose is an excellent choice. I am confident he has the institutional knowledge, the management skills, and the focus toward the future to strategically lead UMOS to new heights. He is the perfect blend of technical expertise, entrepreneurial innovation, and consensus management,” says Lupe Martinez.

Jose Martinez sits on several national and state boards. At the national level he is Chair of the National Migrant and Seasonal Head Start CEO Affiliates, and Vice Chair of the Migrant and Seasonal Head Start Board in Washington, D.C. At the state level, Martinez is Chair of the Governor’s Council on Migrant Labor, President of the Wisconsin Farmworkers Coalition, a member of the Governor’s Task Force on Broadband and the Governor’s Early Childhood Advisory Council. He is also a member of the National Farmworker Housing Directors Association and the University of Wisconsin Cooperative Extension-Latino Task Force.

Martinez, 59, was selected after a nine-month national search.

UMOS is a non-profit, advocacy organization that provides programs and services which improve the employment, educational, health and housing opportunities of under-served populations

NOTE: This press release was submitted to Urban Milwaukee and was not written by an Urban Milwaukee writer. While it is believed to be reliable, Urban Milwaukee does not guarantee its accuracy or completeness.