Meet the CLP Familia

Community Learning Partnership Staff, Board, and Program Partners

CLP Staff

Get to know our growing team!

Rosa M. García, Ed.D.

Member, Board of Directors and Executive Director of CLP and CYLC

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Member, Board of Directors/Executive Director of CLP and CYLC

Rosa M. García serves as Executive Director of Community Learning Partnership (CLP) and California Youth Leadership Corps (CYLC), where she collaborates with state agencies, two-year and four-year public institutions, social justice organizations, and other community partners to expand community change career pathways for historically marginalized students in California and across the nation.

Prior to joining CLP, Rosa served as Director of Postsecondary Education and Workforce Development at the Center for Law and Social Policy (CLASP). At CLASP, she worked to promote policies to expand access to postsecondary opportunities and to increase economic security for historically marginalized students, including first-generation students living in poverty, educationally underprepared adults, students of color, and immigrants.

Prior to joining CLASP, Rosa worked to promote access, affordability, equity and diversity, and student success in higher education through her roles as a public servant and advocate at the federal, state, and local level. Her previous positions include Deputy Chief of Staff/Legislative Director to a senior member of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, Executive Director of Legislative Affairs at the Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities (HACU), Special Assistant/Legislative Aide to a County Councilmember in Montgomery County, Maryland and a gubernatorial appointment to the Maryland State Board of Education.

Rosa received a bachelor’s in History and Latin American Studies at Wesleyan University. She holds master’s degrees from Teachers College, Columbia University, UCLA, and Baruch College, CUNY. In 2015, she earned her Ed.D. from the University of Pennsylvania. Rosa has authored and co-authored numerous publications focused on advancing racial and economic justice in higher education and society.

Hilary Binder-Avilés

Senior Director, Evaluation and Operations

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Senior Director, Evaluation and Operations

Hilary currently serves as CLP’s Program Evaluation and Operations Manager, bringing over 30 years of experience working with national and local nonprofit organizations and coalitions, with a focus on building capacity to engage in advocacy, organizing, and other systems change work. For close to 15 years, Hilary was a Senior Consultant at Mosaica: The Center for Nonprofit Development and Pluralism, where she first began working with CLP as an evaluation consultant in 2012. Since then, Hilary has continued to provide evaluation, operations, network development, and grant writing support as CLP has grown, first as an independent consultant and now as part-time staff.

Hilary has a Bachelor of Arts degree from Wellesley College and a Master of Public Policy from the Kennedy School of Government. In her home city of the District of Columbia, Hilary is actively involved with a community of artists, activists, and organizers using art and culture to build a more just and humane world. She is passionate about creating spaces for people – youth, elders, refugees, immigrants, people directly impacted by injustice – to tell their truths and develop the skills and tools they need to change things.

Louis Jacobs

Senior Director, Finance

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Senior Director, Finance

roque armenta

CYLC Senior Program Director

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CYLC Senior Program Director

roque armenta is the oldest child of immigrants who are from Ciudad Juarez and Guadalajara México. They were born and raised in Huntington Park, CA in Southeast Los Angeles. They are a first-generation graduate with a B.A. in Community Studies from UC Santa Cruz and Masters in Social Work from The University of Southern California.

roque began organizing around Educational Justice with InnerCity Struggle in East Los Angeles fighting for college access, ending the school to prison pipeline and reimagining public school models to meet the needs of BIPOC youth and families in LAUSD. After receiving their MSW in Social Work, roque began to incorporate transformative justice and liberation centered healing strategies to develop holistic youth development programs. Most recently, they oversaw field and organizing efforts with Power California to register, mobilize and activate 18-24 year olds statewide on issues impacting their future. With over 19 years experience in the Youth Organizing movement, roque has worked for both grassroots and statewide organizations that build power to transform public institutions around racial justice, voting, democracy, and equity.

Outside of work, roque creates zines, loves to cook for their loved ones and takes part in collective spaces that center the liberation of Trans, Gender Non-Conforming, and Genderqueer people of color.

Shelia Balque

CYLC Senior Program Director

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CYLC Senior Program Director

Shelia (‘shu-lay-uh’) Balque, a proud, lifelong resident of South Central Los Angeles started her leadership journey as a high school student organizer at Los Angeles Middle College High School as a Young Women’s Division leader for her Buddhist community. As a student activist, Shelia successfully coordinated a series of student protests that saved her college prep program from closure. Sheila holds a B.A. from Soka University of America in Liberal Arts, and her senior Capstone project focused on how romance novels influence and reflect social norms around gender roles and toxic notions of love and intimacy.

Shelia brings deep expertise and experience in community organizing and advocacy; college program design and development; academic and professional coaching; supervision and staff development; and non-profit strategic planning. As a graduate of the Public Allies Los Angeles Apprenticeship Program, Shelia interned at Legacy LA in East Los Angeles as a College Support Specialist for youth who lived in the Ramona Gardens housing projects and as a Research Assistant at CDTech Center for the Building Health Community Initiatives. Since joining CD Tech Center, Shelia has served in various leadership roles; most recently, she led the Community Planning & Economic Development Program and CYLC-ComPlan. She is also a proud alum of the Community Planning & Economic Development Certificate Program, LATTC and has a passion for storytelling and film.

Genet Areda

CYLC Program Director

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CYLC Program Director

Genet is an Oromo immigrant and first-generation college student. She attended De Anza College and got to grow her passion for community organizing there. Genet earned her BA in Political Science from Portland State University. She is the CYLC Program Director and supports the development and expansion of CYLC programs across California. In her free time, she loves crafting and skating with her dogs.

Kenny Solorio

CYLC Program Director

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CYLC Program Director

Hello, my name is Kenny Solorio. I grew up on the Eastside of San Jose. I enjoy music, poetry, camping, running, baking, and much more. I believe “Love” is a spiritual, emotional, and changing force which empowers and heals the world. I think we should live with intention, and hold our spirits and hearts near to what is important: ourselves, our community, and each other. Every day is an opportunity to connect and enact change. I am thrilled to be able to meet you and connect with you in person someday, so we may share our dreams and build a better world.

Andy Briseño

CYLC Communications Manager

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CYLC Communications Manager

Andy Briseño works as the Communications Manager at CLP and is a previous community college student and community organizer for human rights. Before CLP they worked in San Francisco as a Digital Marketing Associate advocating for Immigrant Rights. They often spend their free time volunteering at local LGBTQ+ organizations and continue to work towards building strong communities within their work. In community college they advocated for free and accessible menstrual products, human rights, and student driven art on campus. They currently have a bachelors in Ethnic Studies and a double minor in Latin American studies and LGBTQ+ studies from the University of California, Riverside.

Maricela Aboytes

CYLC Program Director

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CYLC Program Director

As a collaborator and passionate about collective healing and liberation, Maricela (She/Her/Ella) intends to serve communities through empowerment and love. Embodying social justice practices allows her to show up to spaces authentically and such approach fosters and nurtures opportunities for healing, connection and deep empathy. Her professional background consists of working in Education (K-12), Community College and CSU, non-profits and tribal entities. Her formal trainings include GONA Facilitator (Gathering of Native Americans) and Non-Violent Communication, she has a Master of Arts in Organizational Leadership from the University of San Francisco. On the side, Maricela is also a Restorative Justice Practitioner for an organization based in Oakland, CA.

As a dedicated advocate for system- impacted youth and their family units, Maricela aims to cultivate spaces to promote personal and collective efficacy that leads to a sense of belonging.

Jamie Hall

CYLC Program Associate for Career Services

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CYLC Program Associate for Career Services

Jamie has an extensive history in Education, Community Development, and Youth Advocacy/Mentorship. After nearly dropping out of High School in 9th Grade due to being behind more than a semester’s worth of units, Jamie ultimately was able to receive his Diploma on time after a making a complete turnaround – and was granted acceptance to CSULB through the Long Beach College Promise program offered to graduates from LBUSD. Jamie took this opportunity to be the first person in his family to go to college and ran with it, and also accepted the invitation to work for his High School’s AVID Program in which he helped mentor other students through the HS Experience/College Application Process.

Jamie has experienced first hand how education helped change his life for the better, and he has made an effort to help other students use Education as a tool to do the same. During his time in undergrad, he took on various roles such as being a Board Member for his school’s Black Student Union, and working for his University’s Men’s Success Initiative while simultaneously working at his alma mater. Since graduating College, Jamie has worked as a College Advisor for ScholarMatch, while continuing to help out students at his former HS and College from time to time. Jamie loves watching sports, playing basketball, and traveling.

Liberty Ortiz

Accounting Manager, Finance

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Accounting Manager, Finance

Liberty Ortiz was born and raised in the heart of Downtown San Jose. She received her Bachelor of Science in Graphic Communication with minors in Sociology, Psychology, and Ethnic Studies from Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo. Liberty has worked alongside LGBTQ+, reproductive rights, animal rescue, and homeless advocacy organizations in Texas and California. After three transformative years living in Texas, she’s returned to her California roots, where her passion for community work and creativity continue to thrive. In her free time, Liberty sells her handmade art and home goods at local markets and events.

Laura Henry

CYLC Finance Associate

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CYLC Finance Associate

Laura is an Oakland California native and brings over 10 years of experience in the nonprofit sector with a focus in finance, operations and project management. She holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts from the University of the Arts in Philadelphia, PA. After graduating, Laura worked in the entertainment industry in Los Angeles before moving back to the Bay Area and beginning her nonprofit finance career. Before CLP, she was the Finance Assistant for the Freedom Center, a california-based social justice non-profit empowering system-impacted youth to become leaders in their communities. She developed improved management systems and applied her technical writing skills to make key editions to the organizations standard operating procedures. Her efforts resulted in a clear increase in the efficiency between all levels of the organization. Outside of CLP, Laura enjoys traveling with her partner, and is a long-standing volunteer with an Oakland dog rescue.

Sophia San Miguel

CYLC Program Manager

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CYLC Program Manager

Sophia is a Bay Area native and Program Manager for the Immigration Legal Services Pathway Fellowship Program. She comes from a proud immigrant family that has instilled in her the values of resilience, determination, and hard work. She holds her degree in Communication from CSU East Bay and is a dedicated social justice advocate. Sophia believes that education is a powerful tool for change and emphasizes the importance of self-care and mental health, recognizing that taking care of oneself is essential for sustaining long-term advocacy and community work. She strives to inspire others to balance their well-being with their commitment to social justice.

Mandie Torres

CYLC Program Associate

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CYLC Program Associate

Mandie serves as a Program Associate for CYLC. She is a passionate advocate for social justice and youth empowerment, with a diverse background in education, advocacy, and community organizing. Prior to joining CLP, Mandie worked with youth in a variety of capacities. Most recently, she served as a Resident Substitute Teacher, Leadership Advisor, and School Climate Advocate at Miguel Contreras School of Social Justice. Her role was to foster inclusive and supportive environments for systematically disenfranchised students. At UCLA, she was a Peer Advisor and Assistant Project Coordinator for MEChA Xinachtli de UCLA. Whether providing classroom coverage, advising student leadership groups, planning engaging events and activities, or facilitating workshops on social justice topics, she consistently strives to empower students and promote holistic wellness.

Mandie has also engaged in volunteer work. She has served as Director of Cultural Initiatives & Honorary Member at Lets.Give, a nonprofit organization, where she has led several cultural events and workshops, fostering spaces for artistic expression and self-care, particularly for BIPOC youth.

Mandie graduated as a transfer student with a Bachelor of Arts in Chicanx & Central American Studies from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). She also holds minors in African American Studies & Gender Studies, showcasing a dedication to understanding and addressing intersectionality.

CLP Board of Directors

Get to know our CLP leadership.

Co-Chairs, Board of Directors

Denise G. Fairchild, Ph.D.

Co-Chair, Board of Directors
President Emeritus, Emerald Cities Collaborative
Climate Breakthrough 2021 Awardee

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Denise G. Fairchild, Ph.D.

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Co-Chair, Board of Directors
President Emeritus, Emerald Cities Collaborative
Climate Breakthrough 2021 Awardee

From 2010-2022 Dr. Fairchild served as the inaugural President and CEO of Emerald Cities Collaborative (ECC), a national non-profit organization based in Washington, D.C. with affiliates in major urban centers across the United States. She advanced ECC’s “high road” mission to green our cities, build resilient local economies and ensure equity and inclusion in both the process and the outcomes of a green and healthy economy. Dr. Fairchild focuses on building community-led partnerships with labor, environmental and business organizations to increase energy efficiency, clean energy, sustainable foods and clean water with a focus on low-income and communities of color.

Dr. Fairchild is nationally recognized and respected for her 40-year successful track record and innovative programs in sustainable and community economic development, domestically and internationally. In 1995 she founded and directed the Community and Economic Development (CED) Department at Los Angeles Trade-Technical College, as well as an affiliated non-profit community development research and technical assistance organization, CDTech. She founded the Regional Economic Development Institute (REDI), an initiative of Los Angeles Trade-Technical College to provide inner city residents with career and technical education for high growth/high demand jobs in the L.A. region, with a focus on the green economy. From 1989-1995 she served as executive director of LISC-LA helping to build-out the region’s community development industry creating non-profit housing, jobs and businesses that strengthened and improved the health and environments of L.A.’s low-income, communities of color.

Dr. Fairchild received her B.A from Fisk in 1972, a masters in City Planning from the University of Pennsylvania and doctorate in urban planning from UCLA. She holds a number of academic distinctions, including serving as a senior fellow at M.I.T. and U.C.L.A., and serves on numerous national boards. Her recent publication is entitled: Energy Democracy: Equity Solutions to the Clean Economy. She has lived, worked, and educated her sons in South Los Angeles since 1977.

Board Members

Angélica Esquivel

Chicanx and Latinx Studies, Faculty
De Anza College

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Angélica Esquivel

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Chicanx and Latinx Studies, Faculty
De Anza College

Angélica Esquivel is a longtime advocate for undocumented immigrant youth and their families. She advocates for undocumented communities in higher education and grassroots organizing in the community. Angélica has been working as an educator for the past 5 years. Her work in higher education began as a community college student 10 years ago where she co-founded the first student run undocumented student resource center. That supports students, families and the community at large. She continues to work with students, colleagues and families to navigate higher education, access to resources and their rights as human beings. She has both the role as a program lead and professor to support students in and out of the classroom to create institutional change in higher education.

Rosa M. García

Executive Director, CLP and CYLC

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Rosa M. García, Ed.D.

– (she, her, Ella)

Member, Board of Directors/Executive Director of CLP and CYLC

Rosa M. García serves as Executive Director of California Youth Leadership Corps and Co-Executive Director of the Community Learning Partnership (CLP), where she collaborates with state agencies, two-year and four-year public institutions, social justice organizations, and other community partners to expand community change career pathways for marginalized students in California and across the nation.

Prior to joining CLP, Rosa served as Director of Postsecondary Education and Workforce Development at the Center for Law and Social Policy (CLASP). At CLASP, she worked to promote policies to expand access to postsecondary opportunities and to increase economic security for marginalized students, including first-generation students living in poverty, educationally underprepared adults, students of color, and immigrants.

Lena Jones

Political Science Faculty, Minneapolis College
Coordinator of the Community Development A.S. Degree Program

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Lena Jones

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Political Science Faculty, Minneapolis College Coordinator of the Community Development A.S. Degree Program

Lena is a political science faculty member and coordinator of the Community Development A.S. Degree Program at Minneapolis College where she has been teaching since 2002. From 2006 to 2020, Lena was the Director of Race in America, Then and Now, a summer field study course of the Higher Education Consortium for Urban Affairs. Lena was the recipient of a two-year Bush Leadership Fellowship, through which she explored concrete ways for higher educational institutions to build lasting partnerships with community organizations and governments to support the development of students into leaders who can tackle the challenges faced by low-income communities and communities of color in the Twin Cities. In addition to teaching about civil rights and social change in the US context, Lena has also participated in research projects exploring racism, immigration, and social movements in Western Europe and South Africa. Lena has an MA in Political Science with a focus on International Relations and Comparative Politics and a MS in Experiential Education from Minnesota State University-Mankato.

Andy Mott

CLP Board Member

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Andy Mott

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CLP Board Member

Andy is the founder and former Executive Director of the Community Learning Partnership. Before founding CLP, Andy served as Executive Director of the Center for Community Change, completing a total of 35 years as a specialist in building strong and increasingly sophisticated community organizations in low-income neighborhoods and communities of color. Andy was the founding chair of several national coalitions on issues affecting low-income people, including the National Low-Income Housing Coalition and the Coalition on Human Needs.

Brian Murphy

CLP Board Member

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Brian Murphy

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Emeritus President, De Anza College

Brian is the former president of De Anza College, where a key focus of his presidency was the preparation of students to be active, involved citizens committed to transforming their communities. Brian was instrumental in the development of The Democracy Commitment and served as executive director of the San Francisco Urban Institute at San Francisco State University. He has taught political theory at the University of California, Santa Cruz; Santa Clara University; and San Francisco State University.

Ken Rolling

CLP Board Member

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Ken Rolling

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CLP Board Member

Ken served as Executive Director for CLP from 2011 through June 2022. Prior to his work with CLP Ken served as Executive Director of the Chicago Annenberg Challenge; National

Executive Director of Parents for Public Schools; Associate Director of Woods Fund of Chicago; Co–founder of the Justice and Peace Center, Milwaukee; and board member of the Needmor. Ken lives in Evanston, Illinois.

Benjamin Torres

President and Chief Executive Officer of the Community Development Technologies Center (CDTech).

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Benjamin Torres

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President and Chief Executive Officer of the Community Development Technologies Center (CDTech)

Benjamin serves as the President/CEO of the Community Development Technologies Center (CDTech), a nonprofit organization focused on addressing issues of racial equity and economic justice in low-income areas of Los Angeles. Benjamin’s entire career has been focused on placing the tools of democracy directly in the hands of our most marginalized residents through education, training, engagement and multi-ethnic/racial community building. For the last 23 years, his leadership has supported the South LA region’s Black/Brown residents to increase their political capital and economic opportunity. He has developed efforts to create inclusive, democratic and power building strategies utilizing highly effective public, private, nonprofit and community partnerships. He is committed to progressive movement building efforts and serves on the Board of Directors of several key local and national organizations. He also serves as President of City of LA Commission on Community and Family Services and he also serves on the LA County Public Health Equity Task Force Commission.

Edmundo Norte

CLP Board Member

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Edmundo Norte

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Senior Fellow

Born and raised in the heart of East LA, Edmundo identifies as a Chicano and is connected to his indigenous roots while holding multicultural sensibility. He has been both a student and teacher at every level of public and private education, from Kindergarten in South-East LA to graduate school at Harvard University in Human Development and Psychology. He served as the Dean of Intercultural and International Studies at De Anza College for 12 years and has now shifted to Emeritus status, where he continues to teach the year-long cohort courses for the College’s Certificate in Leadership and Social Change. He serves as a Senior Fellow for the Community Learning Partnership (CLP)––a national network of community colleges working closely with community-based organizations to develop educational pathways for organizers from historically marginalized communities. Through CLP he provides training and guidance for the California Youth Leadership Corps (CYLC) statewide project with the same mission, but with greater social-emotional/wellness and financial support for students and CBO’s.

Edmundo brings a critical, social-justice lens to his own integrated practice and teaching of Nonviolent Communication for personal and social transformation, with a focus on indigenously-rooted transformative leadership addressing race, class, difference, and power at the internal, interpersonal, and structural/systemic levels of human experience. He is an avid runner, writer, artist, and the father of two who has lived in Oakland, California for over 30 years.

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