FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
For more information
Rod Ritcherson
608-334-2220
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,” Martinez 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.
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