The Emma S. Barrientos Mexican American Cultural Center (ESB MACC), a cornerstone Austin institution, has announced the recipients of its 2025 Awards of Excellence. The awards have been noting significant cultural achievements since 2009, and provide a thorough summary at a glance of some of the city's most impactful Latine cultural leadership.

Award winners will be honored in an invitation-only ceremony at the Long Center on June 28, which will be livestreamed to the public on Facebook.

The following are 2025 Awards of Excellence Recipients:

• Courtney Enriquez, Emerging Artist: Enriquez’s art career has unfolded over the course of nearly 30 years. Her first solo exhibition took place in 1997, and her second, containing mixed media works inspired by the game of Lotería, will be held at La Pena Gallery this July. In between, she has painted murals at the Dove Springs Recreation Center and Juan in a Million Restaurant.

• Claudia Chapa, The Arts: Chapa is a mezzo-soprano opera singer who trained in Austin and has performed with the operas of Dallas, Virginia, San Diego, St. Petersburg, and of course Austin, where in 2022 she became the inaugural Associate Director of Artistic Administration and Curator of Hispanic and Latinx programming. She now oversees programming in Spanish and works to ensure Latine communities can experience and be represented in opera. She has also founded the Latine Opera Alliance.
• Chuy Chacon, Service: Jesus “Chuy” Chacon is the artistic director at Roy Lozano’s Ballet Folklorico de Texas in Austin, and has been since 1994. His role is to research regions of Mexico and make sure new ones are included in performances, as well as overseeing the School of Dance. In 2024, his 30th anniversary with the company was marked by a State of Texas and Austin City Proclamation. He was also the first U.S. based instructor to represent the Asociación Nacional de Maestros de Danza Popular Mexicana in 2007.
• Walter Guzman, Arts Education: As the founder and director of the Guzmán Ballet Folklórico in Austin, Guzman has brought the talents of local performers to the attention of their hometown as well as Mexico, China, France, Poland, Spain, Indonesia, South Korea, and Japan. These experiences allow young dancers to learn from other cultures while proudly promoting Mexican traditions. In 2025, he is organizing a Mexican festival in Indonesia, with folklórico groups, mariachi musicians, and cooks. His goal is to connect people with Mexico's storied culture.
• Fred Cantú, Lifetime Achievement: Cantú, a news broadcaster, retired on March 31, 2025, after a 53-year career. He was known for his warm and funny style that made locals feel like he was a friend on the air. Throughout his career, which he brought to Austin from the Rio Grande Valley in 1980, he played Tejano hits, delivered local news, and was the first anchor for Telemundo Austin in 2009. He was best known in Austin for his work as an anchor on KEYE-TV and a reporter for CBS Austin.
• Daniel Llanes, Lifetime Achievement: Llanes is a multi-talented environmentalist who also practices traditional Mezo-American folk medicine, writes, performs on multiple instruments, choreographs, and composes music. He uses the performing arts to support his environmental and neighborhood advocacy, including his 2004 program “Learning & Living with Mother Earth,” a theatrical presentation sponsored by PODER (People Organized in Defense of Earth and her Resources). He now serves as the chair of the River Bluff Neighborhood Association, coordinator of Govalle/Johnston Terrace Neighborhood Contact Team, and on the executive committee of the Austin Neighborhoods Council.

ESB MACC is located at 600 River St., but it is closed to the public as it undergoes an expansion and renovation. In the interim, the organization is hosting events at other spaces around town, including recreation centers and libraries. A full schedule of upcoming events is available at austintexas.gov.