Gavilan Joint Community College Governing Board, Trustee Area 2 Candidate Alicia Cortez
Alicia Cortez
I’m Alicia Cortez, a candidate for the Gavilan Joint Community College Governing Board, Trustee Area 2. I hope to represent you because I’m committed to expanding educational opportunities for our community.
My parents instilled in me to do my best in school, but having readily available opportunities to further my education wasn’t always within reach.
I began my higher education journey by chance, not choice. A first-generation college graduate of St. Mary’s College, University of California, Berkeley, and San Jose State University, I hold degrees in Social Welfare and History.
Upon graduation, I worked as a mental health educator and community organizer. I then worked at University of California, Santa Cruz to increase college-going rates, including community college transfers, for our marginalized communities.
For 35-plus years, I’ve worked as a counselor, professor, and most recently as De Anza College’s Dean of Equity and Engagement. I’ve led efforts to close equity gaps for our most vulnerable student populations. With a reputation of building partnerships with colleagues and community members, I have first-hand experience serving diverse students inside and outside the classroom. I value giving back to my community such as volunteering as a mentor to first generation college students for the Gavilan College Puente Project.
Rising from the pandemic, I am concerned about the impact of student success initiatives on our most vulnerable students and how this “new normal” impacts our collective response to students’ academic progress and workforce preparation. I want to help advance Gavilan College’s mission of students’ access, retention, inclusion, and completion of educational goals during these times.
As a trustee, I will act on initiatives that foster student success, innovative instructional programs, institutional effectiveness through policy development, and prudent financial actions. Join me in furthering the success of our students by voting for me this election.
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