Candidate for
Governing Board Member; Rio Hondo Community College District; Trustee Area 2

Vicky Santana attended Columbia University, transferred to Whittier College, and graduated with a Bachelor's of Arts degree in Sociology. She earned her Master's Degree In Public Policy from Harvard University's Kennedy School of Government. Ms. Santana presently serves as Senior Justice Deputy to Los Angeles County Supervisor Gloria Molina. In this capacity, she helps oversee $4 billion worth of law enforcement-related budgets and assists on all county public safety issues involving the Sheriff's Department, Fire Department, District Attorney, Public De-fender, and the Probation Department. Vicky also advises on workers' compensation, risk management, and litigation cost issues. Her tenure with Supervisor Molina also has involved advocacy for education via oversight of the implementation of the L.A. Universal Preschool Initiative and monitoring of the Los Angeles County Office of Education (LACOE)--the largest regional educational agency and HEAD Start program administrator in the nation.

As Senior Justice Deputy, Ms. Santana has worked directly alongside Supervisor Molina to significantly increase Sheriff's Deputy patrol levels in unincorporated neighborhoods, like West Whittier, for the first time in 30 years. They joined Sheriff Lee Baca to bring the Graffiti Tracker to Pico Rivera, widely credited for putting a huge dent in the city's graffiti problem. And they are currently at work reforming how the Probation Department rehabilitates and provides services to youth in their custody. Their diligence on good government issues helped the county save millions of dollars in workers' compensation expenses. As advocates for education, they were instrumental in providing preschool to all four-year-olds in underserved communities, including Pico Rivera and West Whittier. Their oversight of Los Angeles County's Head Start program ensured minimum impact to students and families in cases when HEAD Start operator went into default.

Ms. Santana is an ardent believer in the power and value of education. The daughter of immigrants, she is a product of the Montebello Unified School District where she graduated in the top of her class and was the first in her family to attend an Ivy League institution. When single-motherhood temporarily threatened her educational goals, Ms. Santana remained steadfast in her commitment to graduate from college, returning to Southern California so that--with the support of her loving family--she could balance the challenges of motherhood; her university studies at Whittier College; and her work in the legal and vocational rehabilitation fields. A diligent parent, Ms.Santana has overseen her son Daniel's education. Daniel is now a junior at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland. Ms. Santana also serves on the Rio Hondo College Measure A Citizens Oversight Committee, which is responsible for ensuring that the voter bond-approved measure of $245 million is only used for the construction, reconstruction, rehabilitation or replacement of college facilities on and off campus.

Ms.Santana is a candidate for the Rio Hondo College Board of Trustees, Area 2; the election for this position will be held on Tuesday, November 8, 2011. Ms.Santana is a resident of the beautiful community of Whittier.