Our Team

Amber Riehman

Professional Learning Specialist

Amber Riehman, an educational leader from San Diego, is dedicated to promoting democratic education and equitable practices. As a Professional Learning Specialist with Californians Together, she provides crucial support for high-level instruction, implementing the California EL Roadmap Policy to ensure all multilingual learners receive the best possible education. With nine years of experience in secondary education, Amber has significantly contributed to enhancing English learner programs and leading dual language initiatives. In addition, she served as an instructor at SDSU, focusing on Integrated and Designated English Language Development for Single Subject teacher candidates. She is pursuing a doctoral degree with San Diego State and Claremont Graduate University, focusing on researching joy and belonging within educational environments. Amber’s commitment to student-centered learning is evident through her professional development and curriculum design efforts.

Cristal Zeas

Administrative Assistant

Cristal Zeas is the administrative assistant for the English Learner Leadership and Legacy Initiative and is assisting the Support for Immigrant and Refugee Students (SIRS) project for Californians Together. As a Bay Area native and daughter of Peruvian and Nicaraguense immigrants, Cristal understands the need for accessible resources to help English learners excel in their education and personal endeavors. As a student who had the opportunity to become trilingual in English, Spanish and Chinese, she’s inspired by the work Californians Together does to encourage and impact English learners and bilingualism. When she isn’t working for Californians Together, she’s working alongside bankruptcy, immigration, and dependency law attorneys to further advocate equal opportunities and justice for immigrants and their families.

Cristina Salazar

Legislative Advocate

Cristina Salazar grew up as a migrant student so the 17 years of migration gave her a true bilingual and bicultural education that helped shape her world views. Understanding we live in an era of globalization and fluid borders, Cristina attended Sacramento State University where she majored in International Relations to learn how we function as a global society. After graduation, she fell in love with policy and making positive change at the state level through her work in the state legislature. As a long term English learner, she understands the needs of these students and is excited to advocate for them through her work with Californians Together. During her free time she enjoys photography and capturing precious moments of her children.

Daryl LaFountain

Finance Manager

Daryl is the finance manager for Californians Together. He has worked in nonprofit environments for almost three decades in settings that provide educational opportunities for children and support services for children and families bi-coastally. Most recently he owned and operated a company that provided outsourced financial services for nonprofits nationwide. Daryl lives in Los Angeles with his partner and children. He loves the California weather since relocating to Los Angeles seven years ago.

David Gonzalez

Communications Associate

Born and raised in the San Gabriel Valley, David is a proud product of California’s public schools. He seeks to ensure that every student in the state has access to a high-quality education and the supports they need to thrive in the classroom and beyond. David comes to Californians Together from the Data Quality Campaign, a national education and workforce policy nonprofit, where he worked to support the organization’s communications and federal policy efforts. Previously, he worked directly with students in Azusa and Baldwin Park as an afterschool and extended learning instructor—it was this experience that prompted David to consider the impact of public policy on students and families. He is particularly interested in the intersections of economic, racial, and environmental justice in education. David earned his bachelor’s degree in political science from UCLA as well as a master’s in American government from Georgetown University. Outside of work, David enjoys live music, visiting museums, and supporting his UCLA Bruins.

Leah Lampa

Professional Learning Specialist

A native Californian and daughter of Filipino immigrants, Leah is committed to advocating for California’s English learners and improving their educational experience. Leah has 15 years of experience in public education, including roles as a DC Public Schools elementary teacher, Dual Language Teacher Leader, ELL Department Chair, and District Multilingual Learner Specialist. Her experience has equipped her with expertise in creating language-rich environments and leveraging cultural diversity as assets within communities. Leah holds a bachelor’s degree in sociology from UC Santa Cruz and a master’s degree in Curriculum and Instruction, Early Childhood Education from George Mason University.

Manuel Buenrostro

Policy Director

Manuel comes to this work as a native Californian, son of Mexican immigrants, former English learner, and first generation college graduate. He stands on the shoulders of his family and wonderful mentors and teachers at school, who worked hard to ensure he had access to opportunities. Manuel now has over fifteen years of experience working in public education, starting as an English learner teacher in Los Angeles. He has since worked at DC Public Schools and as an Obama administration appointee at US Department of Education. Prior to joining the Californians Together team, he was a policy analyst for the California School Boards Association, always focusing on closing opportunity gaps and equity. During his free time, you can find Manuel in Sacramento running, hanging out with his dog, Chewie, or at home watching the newest Marvel or Star Wars movies and shows.

Martha Hernandez

Executive Director

Martha Hernandez, the oldest of nine children, is a first-generation college graduate and a role model for her siblings who also earned university degrees and are now serving as physicians, teachers, a computer programmer, an organic chemist and a doctor of pharmacy. She attributes her family’s success to her mother who was an unwavering advocate for her children with a strong belief in the power of public education. Her lifelong support of the United Farm Workers and bilingual education has fueled her commitment to causes of equity and excellence in education especially on behalf of English learners. Her 42 years of public school experience at the classroom, school, district and county levels as well as her involvement in numerous state committees serve her well to advance the vision of Californians Together. Martha and her husband Aurelio Jaúregui are the former owners of Evita’s Mexican Café in Ventura named after their daughter. She is especially proud of her son, Juan Carlos who is an attorney and a computer software engineer.

Ruth Barnett Barajas

Project Director, ELLLI & Support for Immigrant and Refugee Students

Growing up in San Diego County, Ruth had opportunities to become bilingual, applying the Spanish she learned in school by participating in a high school summer program sponsored by Rotary International, in Leon, Gto. (Mexico) and spending a year in Mexico City in college living with a host family and attending La Universidad Iberoamericana. She has been a strong advocate for multilingual programs for English learners and native English speakers alike ever since. With over 30 years in the field of EL education, Ruth has provided instruction and leadership at school and district levels as a Bilingual Teacher, EL Programs Specialist, and School Principal. As Project Director for the English Learner Leadership and Legacy Initiative and the Support for Immigrant and Refugee Students project, Ruth works with senior EL Leaders and advocates from throughout California to continue to build and sustain the movement for educational equity for English Learners.

Sam Finn

Director, Newcomer Policy and Practice

Sam Finn has worked as an elementary teacher, academic researcher, and strategic consultant to state agencies. He is dedicated to supporting the field of newcomer (immigrant student) education through research, resource creation, professional development, and national organizing. Sam is a native of Oakland, California, where he lives, and remains closely connected with Oakland Unified School District. He is descended from immigrants from Hungary, Lithuania, Poland, Romania, and Ukraine.

Shelly Spiegel-Coleman

Strategic Advisor

Since the day she became a teacher in 1970, Shelly only taught and worked in bilingual, English Learner programs. Whether she was a teacher, principal, district specialist or county consultant, her passion has been working with and for English Learners and their families. Her life has been enriched by her experiences in different settings and communities. She grew up in a home in which social justice was valued and celebrated. As an educator, advocating for English Learners became a part of who she is. It was easy to retire from the Los Angeles County Office of Education to come work for Californians Together, and leading the organization was her perfect job. She now works as the Strategic Advisor and is challenged and heartened by our influence across the state. We have struggled, shed tears and rejoiced in our growing ability to influence and create new policies to build multilingual programs and honor the talents and gifts of our students and their families. By working in this movement, her life-long colleagues and friends have become her extended family.

Suzy Jacobson

Executive Administrative Assistant

Suzy is the new Executive Administrative Assistant for Californians Together.  She has worked in nonprofit environments for almost a decade in settings that support leadership training for immigrants and young folks of color in the greater Puget Sound area, work to create cities that embrace good planning and good government, and that strive to create a fair, equitable, and peaceful world for everyone. Suzy supports the work of our leadership team, coordinates the Californians Together Coalition, and is the Executive Board Liaison.

Tamara Orozco

Senior Communications Manager

The daughter of a Mexican immigrant and a Chicana, Tamara grew up hearing stories in both English and Spanish at home and at family gatherings on both sides of the border. Her upbringing along with an early bilingual education helped Tamara build strong cultural values and develop bilingual language skills which have shaped her life and career.

As an award-winning marketing and communications professional, Tamara has helped local and national nonprofit organizations tell stories and grow their brands and audiences for more than a decade. Tamara holds a Master of Arts in Ethnic Studies from the University of California, Berkeley and a Bachelor of Arts in Raza Studies from San Francisco State University. Outside of work, Tamara enjoys travel, time with family, the arts, exploring nature, and wellness.

Vannarith Ou

Administrative Assistant

Van was born in a refugee camp in Cambodia and was brought to the US when he was 4 months old. He is bilingual in Khmer, which he uses regularly in his community. He has been with Californians Together since 2011 where his technical and administrative skills are deeply appreciated. He is committed to the vision of Californians Together and is dedicated to helping build capacity and outreach to educators and students. He enjoys his work because it is challenging and he enjoys the people he works with.

Victoria Weiss

Director of Professional Learning

Victoria currently serves as the Director of Professional Learning. She has a passionate voice for access and equity for all students and an uncompromising view that every student can learn given the proper tools, motivation, and nurturing environment that encourages exploration and enhances student confidence. To achieve these goals, educators need strategic professional learning to deepen their knowledge and efficacy in providing meaningful and impactful instruction. Most importantly, Victoria advocates literacy and believes all educators must read to model critical thinking, creativity, and encourage collaboration among their students and peers.

Xilonin Cruz-Gonzalez 

Deputy Director

A native Californian, Xilonin Cruz-Gonzalez is very proud to be both a fifth-generation Azusa, CA resident and the daughter of a Mexican immigrant. Understanding the similarities and differences between the life experiences of her parents in California schools has driven her passion to be an advocate for all students in California public schools, but especially English Learners. Aligned with this passion, she has served on the Azusa USD Board of Education since 2001 and has served on the boards of several statewide and national non-profits. She works to provide tools and resources to educators to foster a safe and inclusive learning environment for immigrant and refugee students. You can find her project Support for Immigrant and Refugee Students here.

Vickie Ramos Harris

President

Vickie Ramos Harris has two decades of experience advocating for educational equity in California, Boston, and New York City. Vickie’s “community-based policy making” lens drives her work in early childhood (ECE), K-12 and Dual Language Learner/English Learner (DLL/EL) education. As Director of Educational Equity at Advancement Project California, Vickie leads policy advocacy across the Birth to 12th grade system to advance racial equity and economic justice, focusing on areas including: ECE, DLL/EL and bilingual education, ECE-K-12 systems alignment, full and fair funding for public education. She has led and supported research, program design, community engagement and local, state and federal policy and implementation, including state and school district investments in ECE and bilingual education, as well as the creation of a new grade level (transitional kindergarten) in California.

Vickie previously served as Advancement Project California’s Associate Director of Educational Equity, Early Edge California’s State Policy Director, and  Chief of Staff to LAUSD Board Vice-President Yolie Flores. Her prior work also includes direct service with children and families with the Boyle Heights Learning Collaborative, Families In Schools, Upward Bound, Children’s Aid Society, Loisaida Inc., and the Carrera Adolescent Pregnancy Prevention Program. Vickie holds a bachelor’s degree in sociology from Pomona College, and a master’s degree from Harvard University Graduate School of Education. She advocates for DLLs with the Coalition for Quality Early Education, was a fellow with the English Learner Leadership & Legacy Initiative, and formerly served on the Pomona College Alumni Board as well as Board President of the Children’s Collabrium.

Anya Hurwitz

Vice President

Dr. Anya Hurwitz is the Executive Director of SEAL (Sobrato Early Academic Language). She has a longstanding commitment to creating the conditions for public schools to meet the diverse needs of their students’ academic and socio-emotional development. Dr. Hurwitz has worked as a teacher, school leader, district administrator, and within the educational nonprofit sector. The early part of her career was in New York City where she helped start a small secondary school in the Bronx and later became a Network Leader within the NYC Department of Education to a diverse group of 24 schools, preschool through early college. In 2010, she moved to northern California and began working as an educational consultant supporting district and school leaders as they planned and implemented strategic reform efforts.

Dr. Hurwitz joined the SEAL team in 2014 as Deputy Director and became Executive Director in 2017. She has a masters from Teacher College, Columbia University, and a doctorate in educational leadership from UC Berkeley.

Ajay Lucas

Member at Large

Ajay Lucas is a seasoned policy strategist with over a decade of experience in the public, private, and nonprofit sectors. In his current role as Senior Policy Manager at UNITE-LA, he leverages his extensive background to strengthen the organization’s cradle-through-career policy agenda.

Prior to his current role, Lucas led systems-change efforts within the workforce development department at the Los Angeles Area Chamber of Commerce, fostering collaboration among education, business, and workforce leaders. He has also served as an immigration legal service provider at the Central American Resource Center (CARECEN), spearheading partnerships with local community colleges and state universities in Southern California.

Before transitioning to policy work, Lucas spent nearly a decade in the fashion industry, working with Fortune 500 companies. His experiences as a formerly undocumented immigrant fueled his passion for advocacy in education equity, language justice, LGBTQ+ rights, immigration reform, and economic justice. He is committed to enhancing education and career pathways for marginalized communities, particularly immigrants and English learners in California.

Lucas holds a bachelor’s degree in political science from UC Berkeley and is currently completing a master’s degree in public policy at the University of Southern California. In his spare time, Lucas enjoys hiking, running, mentoring students, and caring for his over 100 house plants, embodying the spirit of continuous self-improvement and service to others.

Sharon Merritt

Member At Large

Sharon Merritt, Ph.D., was the Director of the Master of Arts in Teaching (MAT) Program at Fresno Pacific University from 2013 to 2021.  Dr. Merritt’s responsibilities included program development and assessment, faculty recruitment and support, academic and thesis advising, and teaching in the MAT, Single Subject, Multiple Subjects, and Bilingual Authorization programs.  Dr. Merritt also served for more than 20 years as a Lecturer of first year writing at Santa Clara University and other California institutions of higher education, as well as a member of the editorial team for NCTE’s journal, College English from 2001-2007.  Dr. Merritt, bilingual in Spanish and English, has conducted research focusing on language ideologies in dual language and traditional World Language education.  In addition to joining the Board of Californians Together, she served as President of the California Association for Bilingual Teacher Education from 2020-2022 and is currently serving as Past President (2022-2023).

Laurie Olsen

Member At Large

Laurie was one of the original group of EL advocates who in 1998 – heartbroken yet determined in the wake of the passage of Proposition 227 – set out to establish an enduring organization to be a voice for English learners in California. She served on the original Board, and has continued to be integrally involved in our leadership since that time. Believing in the power of words and voice to speak truth to power, she has served as a writer, researcher and spokesperson for Californians Together while also throwing herself into creating models and examples of powerful joyful classrooms and schools for English learners as Director of the Sobrato Early Academic Language model currently being replicated in 100 schools across 20.

Lynne Christine Aoki

“I should like to be able to love my country and still love justice.” — Camus

September 21, 1949 – November 3, 2019

Lynne Aoki was a part of Californians Together even before we formally became a coalition. She was “all in” to defeat Proposition 227 in 1998. As the activist she was, she held fundraisers, distributed materials to voters, made phone calls and more. With her calm, soft-spoken, can-do demeanor, she demonstrated great leadership during that difficult campaign.

As a representative of the National Association for Multicultural Education to Californians Together, Lynne attended, contributed to and provided guidance for the creation and development of the work of Californians Together. She served on our Executive Board as Secretary and was Vice President at the time of her death in November 2019. Her fingerprints are all over almost every grant we have written – providing input and expert editing. Through her talent and expertise, many new funders became convinced to support our work.

She was also working on finalizing new criteria and procedures for awarding our Annual Multiple Pathways to Biliteracy District Recognition Award. We are proud to honor Lynne by renaming this award the Lynne Aoki Multiple Pathways to Biliteracy District Award.

Lynne Aoki will always be with us and we are forever grateful to her.