About Richard

Drawing on over 16 years of experience as a community organizer, Richard is uniquely qualified to pull our community together in support of our children’s future. Following his graduation from El Cajon Valley High School, Richard went on to:

• Earn a Bachelors Degree in American History from UCSD, and a Masters Degree in Public Policy from Harvard University
• Organize residents of distressed and low-income neighborhoods to revitalize their communities and develop affordable housing, quality health care, job training programs, support networks for parents of pre-school aged kids, neighborhood watch groups, and groups engaging young people in community solutions. Richard’s community development experience includes five years as President of the Consensus Organizing Institute, in which he built connections between neighborhood leaders and leaders from government, business, labor, universities and philanthropic foundations. Richard has also worked for the Local Initiatives Support Corporation, the Comer Science and Education Foundation, and as a consultant for the City Heights Community Development Corporation
• Organize homecare and healthcare workers – those who take care of sick, elderly and disabled members of our community – to achieve better pay and benefits for themselves and their families, enabling them to remain in their professions and provide quality care to their patients. Richard’s approach has always been to help workers build their own vision and strength, while negotiating for improved pay and benefits in ways that help both workers and the healthcare system overall. Richard’s labor experience has included work as the San Diego Regional Organizer for both the United Domestic Workers and United Healthcare Workers. He will bring his skills in organizing and negotiating to the critical challenge of building a cooperative relationship between the School District and its teachers and classified staff.

Richard serves his community as a board member of the San Diego Cooperative Charter School, the Greater Golden Hill Community Planning Committee, the San Diego League of Conservation Voters, and the San Diego Unity League, and volunteers for the Urban Corps of San Diego County and as a coach for his sons’ North Park Little League teams. He has served as a past board member for Homestart – a San Diego-based child abuse prevention program – as well as for the Foundation for the Children of the Californias.

Richard is a first generation San Diegan whose father, Ernesto, immigrated to the United States from Colombia, and whose mother, Marion is the daughter of European immigrants who came to America through Ellis Island. Both Ernesto and Marion went on to teach at San Diego State University, where Ernesto was a professor and chair of the Spanish Department. Richard’s older brother Ernie is a local journalist, and his younger brother Doug is completing a PhD in Higher Education at UCLA.