Susy was born and raised in San Jose but moved to Chowchilla, a small town in the Central Valley when she was 11 years old. Susy is the eldest of three sisters to Mexican immigrant parents and her experiences with social and racial inequality have informed and shaped her career goals. Susy’s experiences with educational inequalities including low teacher expectations, remedial tracking, and lack of support motivated her desire to increase access to higher education for students of color.
Through her experiences as a History and Chicano Studies double major at UCLA, Susy learned the language to identify and describe the systemic barriers her immigrant and farmworker community continues to face. She received her masters in counseling from Fresno State which will enable her to holistically support youth and her team at yli. She is passionate about supporting marginalized communities in accessing necessary resources and higher education to in turn achieve social and economic mobility.
Susy is excited to support the Youth United and Moving Forward programs to elevate the communities she is from. Youth United is a program made up of 10-12 youth who are currently advocating for a park tax measure with the Merced City Council. Moving Forward annually engages 4 cohorts of 10 youth in a restorative justice program focused on increasing youth input on mental health resources with the Merced County Board of Supervisors.
In her free time, Susy loves to read historical fiction by authors of color and keep learning about the history of Latin America as well as spending time with her friends and family.