As the demand for diversity in the tech industry intensifies, Latinx students are finding empowerment and support in dedicated affinity spaces tailored to their aspirations.
In Claremont, that space is the 5C Latinx in Tech (5C LIT) club.
Luis Mendoza Ramirez CM ’25 founded 5C LIT during his sophomore year in hopes of creating a community where Latinx students could surround themselves with peers planning to matriculate into the tech industry.
Ramirez was inspired to spearhead 5C LIT after interning with Meta in high school, where he coded apps through Xcode and shadowed cybersecurity engineers, solidifying his passion for technology — and making him keenly aware of the lack of Latinx representation in the field.
“I’m a Latino computer science major at Harvey Mudd [College],” Ramirez said. “Which means that most of my classes are pretty much not dominated by people that look like me.”
During his high school internship at Meta, Ramirez met a Latinx college student who was also pursuing a technological career. Their kinship drove him to create a space in Claremont.
“I was excited to meet another Latino with the same aspirations as myself,” Ramirez said. “He made me really passionate about wanting to continue to pursue it, which is another reason for why I created this club, hoping to be able to do that for other students on campus.”
He found his light when Harvey Mudd notified students about available grants for those interested in establishing clubs to promote diversity within computer science fields, providing him the perfect opportunity to get his club off the ground.
Primarily, 5C LIT gives members holistic tools to succeed in the tech field, such as resume editing, internship search guidance, interview skills and networking help. The club also features a Tech Talks series, where professionals in the tech industry speak about their experience and offer advice to students.
“[If] there’s one thing I’ve learned from talking to various professionals in the field, it is that there are no linear pathways to working in technology,” Ramirez said. “You can be any major, you can be interested in anything. As long as you are interested in working for a tech company, those are the things we are looking for.”
Among students, 5C LIT is a great success. The club motivated Leonardo Torres PO ’26, for one, to explore different avenues in the tech industry.
“I feel like 5C LIT has really pushed me to maybe do software engineering or AI or research — there are just so many options,” Torres said. “When I took my first class at Pomona [College], I was really worried that I wouldn’t be able to do computer science, but that motivated me to join a club like this.”
Existing tech clubs at the 5Cs focus primarily on engineering — and none of them are specifically for Latino students, making Ramirez’s venture especially important. Kassandra Soriano PZ ’25 emphasized the importance of clubs like 5C LIT as a support system for first-generation Latino college students.
“A space like this is important to help create a safe environment for all Latino people,” Kassanda Soriano, who hopes to go into biotech, said. “It can be very scary trying to navigate the tech industry on your own, so having people who also want to go into the same thing as you can be a support system.”
Angeles Soriano SC ’24, who manages the club’s outreach and social media, reiterated 5C LIT’s commitment to increasing representation in the field.
“I don’t think I’ve seen a lot of tech clubs focusing specifically on Latinos,” Angeles Soriano said. “I think the community aspect of this club is important in an institution like ours. We created a community where we can feel safe and get help with our career goals.”
Next up on 5C LIT’s docket is the Bloomberg Tech Talk. The company will be flying tech employees into Claremont so that students can network and ask questions in person.
Ramirez looks forward to the opportunity as well as the club’s future.
“I hope we can inspire students to continue to pursue a career in technology and be able to maintain the community we built,” Ramirez said.
5C LIT meets on Mondays at 8 p.m. To keep up with their events, follow them on Instagram: @5Clatinxintech