Latinas are still underrepresented in the media. I want to help do something about it.

So, I did a little something. I created The Ñ Fund for Latinas in Journalism, a way to contribute to the advancement of Latinas in the field of journalism through grants to nonprofit organizations and educational institutions.

Let me tell you about how this idea of mine came to be — and what I hope it will become.

Despite the chronic dearth of Latinos in journalism, I still decided to get into the business when I was coming out of college in the ‘90s.

I had a vague, hazy vision of myself becoming a reporter — if I worked really hard and got really lucky.

But I never dreamed of becoming a columnist, because with as few Latinas as I saw in journalism when I was coming up, there were even fewer Latina columnists. That hasn’t changed much.

And while having Latina reporters in newsrooms is key, I’d argue that having Latina columnists with the editorial freedom to not just tell readers what’s happening but what should be done can be just as vital.

I was the only Latina news columnist at the Hartford Courant, where my career started. I am the only Latina columnist at The Inquirer. Take a look at the rosters of columnists at some of the largest U.S. newspapers, and tell me what you see. Typically, not columnists who look or sound or reflect the experiences of people like me.

I had hoped that the landscape would be different at this point in my career, but as a recent study showed, despite Latinos making up about a fifth of the U.S. population and about half of the nation’s population growth since 2010, Latino underrepresentation in media continues, and it’s even worse for Latinas.

I’m nowhere near done with journalism or column writing, but I’ve long thought that I’d feel better when the time came to move on if I saw other Latinas stepping onto the kind of privileged platform that I have been lucky enough to have.

Instead, I’ve seen opportunities denied and dreams deferred.

This is where folks who want too much credit for incomplete efforts would say that there has been some progress, otherwise, how would I be writing this column at a major newspaper? And they wouldn’t be totally wrong. But the fact that I remain one of the few journalists of color with the position I have means that what we’re doing now is just not enough.

So, with the guidance of the Philadelphia Foundation, an organization that works with donors to establish funds that fulfill their philanthropic goals most effectively, I did something that feels simultaneously thrilling and audacious. Because, as I kept telling myself through the process: Who do I think I am? My name is Ubiñas, not Gates. (Full disclosure: The Inquirer is owned by the Lenfest Institute for Journalism, which operates under the auspices of the Philadelphia Foundation.)

“After spending much of my career calling out people for not doing enough to be part of the solution, I figured that I’d better hold myself accountable as well.”

Look, I’m not trying to break my arm patting myself on the back here. I’m not sharing this to be at all self-congratulatory, but to stand by my words. And after spending much of my career calling out people for not doing enough to be part of the solution, I figured that I’d better hold myself accountable as well, and be transparent about doing so.

So, allow me to introduce the Ñ Fund (say it: enye), my own contribution to the solution.

And if you’re interested in helping me grow the fund, donations can be made directly through the foundation’s website or with a check made out to: Philadelphia Foundation, Attn: The Ñ Fund for Latinas in Journalism, P.O. Box 826728, Philadelphia, PA 19182-6278.

So, what does this mean? It means, for example, that if a nonprofit organization or a school (especially community colleges, which have always been near and dear to me) has a program for, say, nurturing future Latina reporters and/or columnists and could use a grant, I’d love to hear from them.

This is all new, and I want to be very thoughtful about where the available resources can do the most good, so be patient with me.

» READ MORE: Five years in, #MeToo speaks to movements built on moments over lifetimes | Helen Ubiñas

I know there are better-known and better-financed programs and initiatives for journalists of color; I support many of them and will continue to do so. Even with all of my criticisms of journalism, I believe deeply in its power. I also believe that its power will never be fully realized until this business I love so deeply truly reflects the world around us.

Still, as reluctant as I was to do this — what good will something this small do? — I also know that change often begins with a single step. And maybe it’s no coincidence that this all came together right before Hispanic Heritage Month ends on Saturday. Perhaps that’s a sign that this isn’t so strange an idea after all.

And in terms of its future, who knows where this might go? Ernest Robles, who died last month, started the Hispanic Scholarship Fund, a grant that supports Latino students working toward a college education, with a $30,000 mortgage on his home. That was in 1975. By the time he died, the fund had granted $700 million in scholarships.

That money has made a real difference in the lives of young people, and I hope the Ñ Fund can do a bit of the same. After all, I know how isolating and lonely it can be to be the first, or the only, or one of just a few. I know it can help to be able to look into a room and see someone who looks like you, and who has made the path less arduous for those coming behind them.

I would have liked that for me. I want that for those who come next.