East LA College and Educate to Empower Leaders Named as PBS SoCal’s 2024 Local Heroes Honorees Recognizing Regional Individuals Dedicated to Making a Difference
Annual Holiday Community Celebration Event To Honor Local Heroes Nominees as Well as Acknowledge Andres Bustamante for Transformative Work with Children and Families
Pictured (from l to r): 2024 PBS SoCal Local Heroes honorees Stacy Yung and Virginia Nguyen as well as Dr. Alberto Román. Also pictured, is Andres Bustamante recipient of the Bryson Transformative Leader in Early Childhood Award.
(Images Courtesy of PBS SoCal)
Los Angeles, Calif. – Nov. 13, 2024 – PBS SoCal, Southern California’s flagship PBS organization, announced today the individuals named as honorees of the Local Heroes and the John and Louise Bryson Transformative Leader in Early Childhood Award initiatives. The 2024 Local Heroes were selected from ten outstanding nominees making a difference in the community and recommended by the organization’s Community Advisory Board. Honorees were named as Stacy Yung and Virginia Nguyen, co-founders of Educate to Empower as well as Dr. Alberto J. Román, President of East Los Angeles College (ELAC). Following the tragic events of March 2021, including the murder of six Asian women, Yung and Nguyen co-founded Educate to Empower, a platform designed to combat anti-Asian hate while standing in solidarity with marginalized communities. While under Dr. Román's leadership, ELAC has not only grown to become the largest community college in the state based on headcount, but also a beacon for underserved communities, successfully closing equity gaps in completion and transfer rates for students of color. All ten 2024 Local Heroes nominees will be celebrated at an annual private Holiday Community Celebration event that will be held this year at PBS SoCal’s Costa Mesa Studios on Mon., Dec. 9.
The Holiday Community Celebration will also recognize education researcher and UC Irvine Associate Professor Andres Bustamante who will receive the John and Louise Bryson Transformative Leader in Early Childhood Award that recognizes unwavering support for early learning. The award embodies community members John and Louise Bryson’s commitment and dedication to children and families in Southern California. This year’s honoree was selected for his strong commitment to creating learning environments within urban public spaces that are reflective of the communities these spaces serve.
The award will carry on the Brysons’ dedication to improving access to high-quality early childhood experiences for all.
2024 Local Heroes
With honorees like Yung, Nguyen and Román, the Local Heroes program recognizes the accomplishments of those who are dedicated to making a difference in the community: activists, community leaders and visionaries doing critical work that often goes unrecognized in the Southern California region. PBS SoCal Local Heroes Honorees and Nominees were put forth and selected by the organizations’ Community Advisory Board (CAB), an active group of volunteer leaders from around the region that plays an integral part in the planning and implementation of many outreach programs including the Local Heroes initiative.
With over 30 years of combined experience in education, Stacy Yung and Virginia Nguyen have dedicated their careers to empowering teachers and cultivating inclusive learning environments. As co-founders of Educate to Empower, they have trained thousands of educators across Southern California, creating a movement to bring equity, belonging, and student-centered transformation to schools and communities. Virginia and Stacy’s work centers on amplifying voices and building collaborative spaces where students and educators from all backgrounds feel seen, heard, and valued. Through the resources and professional development they create, they foster meaningful dialogues around allyship, social justice, and community-building that extend beyond the classroom. As founding committee members of the Teaching for Justice conference at UCI, Virginia, and Stacy have demonstrated visionary leadership in advancing diversity, equity, inclusion, and justice in education. Their commitment to standing in solidarity with marginalized communities has not only uplifted individual narratives but has also contributed to inclusive, empowering spaces for all. Educate to Empower continues to impact education, bridging communities and equipping teachers with the tools and support needed to foster change. Virginia and Stacy’s unwavering dedication to justice-centered and joyfilled educational environments reflects their belief that education is not just a career but a pathway to social transformation and collective liberation.
For the last 24 years, Dr. Alberto J. Román has worked for educational institutions developing and advancing educational programs for underserved communities. As an immigrant and first-generation college graduate his experience encompasses positions in the public school system that have ranged from a faculty member to director of human resources, and from assistant superintendent to college president. In the role of Vice Chancellor of Human Resources for the Los Angeles Community College District, one of the nation's largest and most diverse districts, he provided leadership and support to nine colleges that collectively served over 200,000 students. As college president of ELAC, he has increased college access for underserved students and closed achievement gaps through rigorous academic programs and student support services. The college was recently awarded the prestigious state-wide John W. Rice Award for its outstanding work in advancing diversity and equity.
The additional individuals selected as the 2024 PBS SoCal Local Heroes nominees are as follows:
- Candido Cornejo - Casting Director, Casting Society of America
- Umar Hakim Dey - Executive Director, Inkerij Foundation
- Aziza Hasan - Executive Director, NewGround: A Muslim-Jewish Partnership for Change
- Ayla Jefferson - Chief Building Official, Transtech Engineers / President, Alhambra Rotary Club
- Daniel H. Kim - Co-Founder & Chairman, Dragon Kim Foundation
- Rebecca Murga - Writer, Director of Communications for Veterans in Media & Entertainment
- Sue Obeidi – Senior Vice President, The Muslim Public Affairs Council, Hollywood Bureau
- Riji Raja – Founder, Affirmation Darling
Profiles including complete bios for this year’s Local Heroes nominees and honorees (as well as past years’ Local Heroes) can be found at pbssocal.org/localheroes while a short promotional video featuring the 2024 Local Hero Honorees will begin running on-air in the new year.
2024 John and Louise Bryson Transformative Leader in Early Childhood Award Recipient
The John and Louise Bryson Transformative Leader in Early Childhood Award will be presented to education researcher and UC Irvine Associate Professor Andres Bustamante. Having received numerous honors and awards, including the Association for Psychological Science Rising Star Award, Bustamante has authored over 40 peer-reviewed publications and researches play-based learning in early childhood education. In 2024, Bustamante and his research team partnered with Santa Ana Early Learning Initiative (last year’s recipient of the Bryson Transformative Leader in Early Childhood Award) to co-design public installations in urban areas to encourage families and children to engage in informal STEM learning. Bustamante utilized community-based, participatory research to design installations using local community input and feedback to reflect the unique needs, culture and values of the Latino communities in Santa Ana. Ultimately, the goal is that installations in Santa Ana will serve as a model for other cities within Orange County and beyond to embed learning opportunities within public spaces.
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