Que pasa? PEOPLE AND EVENTS

Jule D. Vargas, new president of the Hispanic Bankers Assn., feels there aren’t enough Latinos “handling high leadership positions in financial institutions--and we’re going to get more.” A Security Pacific National Bank regional vice president in Los Angeles, Vargas, 40, said that the 60-member association wants to increase its membership to 300 this year. The group will also train bilingual bank managers to give community seminars on opening a checking account, applying for a loan and choosing an investment. “This year we’re concentrating on doing just a couple of things,” she said, “and doing them really well.”

* Garfield High School sophomore Julian Torres is convinced he inherited his love of the game of chess. “My father was a chess buff. So was my grandpa and my great grandpa,” said the 15-year-old, who was one of two competitors to win all five games recently at the annual Los Angeles Unified School District Chess Tournament. Torres’ perfect score also helped Garfield’s eight-member team to take home the championship trophy for the second straight year. Team members are so dedicated to improving their game, he said, that they often spend their lunch time playing chess. “Hopefully, with practice, I will someday be one of the best chess players in the world,” he said.