About

I am a Los Angeles native, a product of public schools, and the daughter of Pilipino American immigrants. I am a graduate of the UCLA School of Education and Information Studies, having obtained a Masters in Library and Information Science with a specialization in information organization. 

For years I worked with the world’s leading research institutions including UCLA, The Getty Center, The Huntington Library, Art Galleries & Botanical Gardens, and Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences as well as consulted for cultural institutions including the Skirball Cultural Center and Japanese American National Museum. Later, I consulted for the federal government USDA Forest Service and subsequently spent six years with the award-winning Salt Lake City Public Library leading multiple departments in management positions, strategic planning with administrators, and developing and implementing systemwide adult programming. While at SLCPL, I simultaneously directed the Library of Congress state affiliate Utah Center for the Book. In more recent years, I have been partnering and collaborating with others on a variety of endeavors from small business retail operations to residential (and some commercial) remodeling design and construction projects.

My dedication to serving communities transformed into what I perceive to be a bit of a calling throughout years of working in libraries. In subsequent years after an intended hiatus from library-related employment, I found myself advocating for others and increasingly recognized the need to empower residents and other stakeholders in my communities.

Earlier service-oriented commitments were made, in part, as a response to the absence of others willing and available to take on more visible roles. Sometimes these roles require unique skillsets to develop and implement plans, establish and nurture relationships, and navigate challenging circumstances with extremely limited resources.