Ruth López, Director
Ruth López is an education advocate and organizer in the Central Valley. Based in her hometown in Kings County, she previously worked with Penn Hill Group, a Washington, D.C. based education policy lobbying and consulting firm, where she focuses on bridging the divide between policy and practice. López has a strong background in education policy and particular expertise in issues relating to English language learners and disadvantaged communities. López started her career in Washington, D.C. where she worked as a policy analyst at the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund’s (MALDEF) National Public Policy Office where she handled key federal policy priorities including developing and advocating for policies focused on increasing educational attainment among Latinos. Ruth is a founding board member for the Armona Scholarship Committee, a Hanford Relay For Life team captain, a volunteer with the Girl Scouts of Central California South Troop #3049 and a Kings County Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA). She currently serves on the boards for the Central Valley Partnership and American Youth Soccer Organization (AYSO) Region 1653. Most recently, she established a non-profit organization focused on civic engagement and increasing voter turnout called Valley Voices. López holds a bachelor’s degree in political science and Spanish with an emphasis on Hispanic languages and bilingual issues and a minor in education from the University of California, Berkeley.
Ivette Chaidez, Civic Engagement Program Director + Communications
Ivette is a local business owner, community organizer, and safe driving advocate. She and her family emigrated from Mexico to the Central Valley in 1991 and have lived in Hanford since 1993. In 2012, after the tragic loss of her sister “Itzy”, she founded Buckle Up for Itzy, a local nonprofit group, to raise awareness, educate and empower teens, parents and members of our community about the dangers of reckless and distracted driving by sharing her sister’s story using evidence-based programs in English and Spanish. Ivette has received various awards for her work around injury prevention, most recently, she received the Latino Inspire Award from former Congressman TJ Cox for her outstanding service to California’s 21st Congressional District. Ivette’s passion for empowering others is not limited to traffic safety and injury prevention, she believes empowering underserved populations is paramount to happy, healthy and equitable communities, this led her to joining the Valley Voices team. Knowing every aspect of our lives is affected by politics at all levels, Ivette began encouraging her friends and family to get involved locally, register to vote, and vote in every election when she was 17. Ivette combines her public speaking and community organizing experience with her love for social media to disseminate critical information to community members in her Civic Engagement + Communications Director position.
Claire Fitiausi, Public Health Director
Claire is currently the President of the Kings County Art League and serves on the Executive Board of the Kings Art Center. She previously served on the board of the Parent Teacher Club of her daughter’s bilingual Spanish/English school, working with parents and educators to plan and execute educational and social events for K-8 students. She’s worked as a Team Lead and Supervisor with excellent results in problem resolution.
Rommel Vasquez, Outreach Specialist
Rommel is one of our most friendly Outreach specialists. Well versed in all the many resources and programs Valley Voices offers, his bilingual communication skills connect with many in the community.
Jorge Luna, Data Analyst
Jorge serves as the Data Analyst at Valley Voices, where he leverages his expertise in data analytics to support underserved communities. He holds a Master of Science in Data Analytics from San Jose State University, and his professional development includes training in Data Science and Business Analytics. Jorge also earned a Bachelor of Arts in Economics with a minor in Political Science from the University of California, Merced.
At Valley Voices, Jorge manages outreach reporting for our workers’ rights portfolio and gathers, cleans, and analyzes data from internal databases and surveys. He is currently spearheading the development of a streamlined CRM system to enhance data organization and outreach efforts. In his role he focuses on gathering data to inform strategic outreach decisions and creating comprehensive reports to track progress on grant deliverables.
Before joining Valley Voices, Jorge worked as a Client Relations Associate at Vanguard Cleaning Systems, where he developed reports, analyzed data, and managed communication between client accounts and internal departments. He also has experience in financial reporting and account reconciliation from his previous role as a Cash Office Associate at Stop and Shop Supermarket. Jorge is committed to using his skills to enhance community outreach and disaster preparedness initiatives through data-driven insights and reporting.