Candidate for
Trustee; Miracosta Community College District; Trustee Area 4

In addition to my devotion to family, my life-long passion has revolved around service to community. My commitment to making a difference spans many years and involves many areas. Working with youth is a continuing priority: I have been a mentor in MiraCosta's Puente Program, a community representative on the Juvenile Justice Program with the Carlsbad Police Department for the past twenty years, and, during my sons' time at Carlsbad High School, I was actively involved in programs to increase parent involvement, scholarships, student success, and drug awareness. I was a founding member of the Beca Scholarship Foundation.

At the civic and community level, I have formed part of numerous boards, commissions, and voluntary organizations which include the San Diego County Human Relations Commission, the Advisory Board of the San Diego County Department of Transborder Affairs, and SER/Jobs for Progress. I served as Migrant Issues Coordinator for the City of Encinitas reporting directly to the City Council. In that position, I was instrumental in establishing San Diego County's first Jobs Center for immigrant workers and I am credited with attempting to resolve, in a positive and balanced way, the delicate situations that arose between migrant workers and the Encinitas community. The Encinitas Jobs Center became the model for the successful Carlsbad Jobs Center that has been in existence for over a decade.

Raised in Oceanside, I attended Oceanside High School and went on to MiraCosta where I became the first woman Student Body President in 1965. I have been credited with renaming the college from Oceanside-Carlsbad Jr. College to MiraCosta College. As a strong supporter of the arts and culture at MiraCosta, one can frequently find me attending theatre, dance, literary events along with events and ceremonies which celebrate and honor students. I am particularly proud of three of my favorite events: the Citizenship Celebration, the Adult High School Graduation, and the Nursing Program Pinning Ceremonies. I am pleased to have been a part of the students' success by my role on the governing board.

With my A.A. degree in hand, I moved to Mexico and continued my education at the Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México in Mexico City and at the Instituto Tecnológico de Estudios Superiores de Monterrey (ITESM) in Querétaro, Mexico. At the ITESM, I was the director of the Querétaro Campus Library, director of Faculty Resource Development, and assistant to the Vice-Chancellor. With a degree in Business Administration, and being a Certified Administrative Hearing Interpreter/Translator, my husband and I established and operate a successful translation business in Carlsbad, where we have lived for the past 26 years.