After 40 years, Guadalupe Centers CEO Cris Medina retires amid workplace investigation
Guadalupe Centers Inc. CEO Cris Medina will retire from the Kansas City nonprofit organization after 40 years.
Medina, widely credited with growing the Latino organization over his tenure, has been on administrative leave in recent weeks amid a workplace investigation by an outside firm.
Officials with the center have declined to characterize the nature of the investigation.
Guadalupe Centers announced Medina’s retirement in a Monday news release. The organization cited several career achievements for the outgoing chief executive, including the 1985 opening of a Head Start facility, the 2003 renovation of the center’s historic facility on Avenida Cesar E. Chavez and the 2014 purchase and renovation of the Saint Paul School of Theology.
“On behalf of all directors and the thousands of Kansas Citians served over the years, we would like to thank Cris for his decades of service to Guadalupe Center,” Paul Rojas, chairman of the Guadalupe board, said in a news release.
Medina could not be reached for comment.
Beto Lopez, who had been leading on an interim basis during Medina’s absence, will continue in that role as the board undertakes a national search for a new leader, the news release said. Lopez has been the organization’s chief operating officer since 2018 and previously served as president of the board.
Guadalupe Centers, which touts itself as the “Longest Continuously Operating Organization Serving Latinos in the United States,” celebrated its 100th anniversary in 2019. It offers a myriad of programs and services for the region’s Latino community. Those include housing and homelessness programs, substance abuse counseling, workforce development programs, youth sports and a senior center.
Guadalupe also operates charter schools that serve children from preschool through 12th grade.
Medina started at Guadalupe in 1980, when the organization occupied two buildings. It now occupies multiple campuses across the metro area and employs hundreds of people.
