A Pivotal Moment in Our History: Introducing Roberto Ordeñana

By Andrew Shaffer

The GLBT Historical Society is excited to announce that Roberto Ordeñana will be joining as its new executive director in mid-October. He will be formally introduced at Reunion, the society’s annual Gala, on October 19. Tickets and additional information for the event are available at glbthistory.org/reunion.

Decades of Service

The son of proud Nicaraguan immigrants, Roberto is a native San Franciscan who has spent more than 25 years investing in LGBTQ communities. He was most recently the deputy executive director of the San Francisco LGBT Center, where he built direct service, arts and cultural programs, and worked to strengthen the Center’s organizational capacity and long-term sustainability. His decades of service began in the late 1990s at STOP AIDS Project where he developed nationally recognized HIV prevention programs and community organizing projects with Latinx gay, bisexual, and trans youth.

“I’m thrilled to join the GLBT Historical Society as its executive director,” said Roberto. “We are at a pivotal moment of history for LGBTQ people, women, immigrants, and communities of color. Our hard-fought gains are under attack by political extremists who wish to force us back into the closet, lock us up in cages, or make us disappear altogether. Now more than ever it is vital that we preserve and exhibit our queer history and contributions to culture and society. For nearly 40 years, the GLBT Historical Society has proudly shined a light on our history and culture. I’m honored to join an organization that has worked to lift up the histories of trans people, nonbinary people and communities of color.” 

Roberto brings a background in nonprofit management, community service, and engagement with the arts that set him up well to lead one of the world’s most important LGBTQ cultural organizations. He also volunteered with San Francisco community boards and city commissions, serving as president of the board of directors of Bay Area Young Positives and as a member of the LGBTQ+ Advisory Committee of the San Francisco Human Rights Commission. In 2012, he was appointed to the San Francisco Arts Commission, and he served as president of the Commission from 2019 to 2022.

Building the Future

Gesturing towards the future, Roberto continued, “I look forward to working with the incredible staff of the GLBT Historical Society to establish a permanent home for its internationally recognized archives, exhibitions and public programs. Such a space will allow our entire community and allies to continue to learn from our past, in order to build the future that we and future generations deserve and desire.”

The society’s Board of Directors spent a year engaged in a thorough search and selection process to find the right leader at this crucial time in the organization’s history. “Roberto steps in with two and a half decades of work in the community, which will prove invaluable during a pivotal time for our organization and the nation, and ensure the successful launch of a capital campaign to find a permanent home for the archives and museum,” the board said in a statement. “With Roberto’s leadership experience and commitment to inclusion, diversity, equity, and access, we will ensure that we not only represent but also respect the true diversity of LGBTQ communities.”