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Home / About Us / Staff

Staff

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Marcos Vargas

Executive Director
Pronouns: he/him/his

Dr. Marcos Vargas has served as the Executive Director of the Fund for Santa Barbara since 2015, bringing to his leadership role with the FUND his extensive experience in community organizing, policy advocacy, and nonprofit organizational development. Prior to coming to the FUND, he served as the founding Executive Director of the Central Coast Alliance United for a Sustainable Economy (CAUSE), a community-based social movement organization for social, economic, and environmental justice based in Ventura and Santa Barbara Counties. Expand

Marcos’s over three decades of experience in the nonprofit sector has also included serving as the Executive Director of El Concilio del Condado de Ventura, a Ventura County Latina/o community advocacy and multi-service organization (1986-1995), and the Director of Planning for the United Way of Ventura County (1984-1986). His volunteer leadership service have included serving on numerous local, regional and national boards and community campaigns, including the founding chairperson of the Ventura County Living Wage Coalition (1997-2001), and on the board of directors of the McCune Foundation, the Common Counsel Foundation, the Partnership for Working Families, and the Ventura County Workforce Development Board. Marcos has received numerous awards in recognition of his community work, including the 2014 Outstanding Citizen Award from the California Federation of Teachers, the Cesar Chavez 50 in 50 Leadership Award from the United Farm Workers of America, El Concilio Latino Leadership Award, and Earth Summit Leadership Award from the Ventura County Citizens for Peaceful Resolution (CPR). His work on behalf of the rights of low-wage working women, including his publication of the 2001 report on the Feminization of Poverty in the California Central Coast, won him the 2003 Leadership Award from the National Women’s Political Caucus of Ventura County.

Among his accomplishments over his four years with the FUND, Marcos has led in an effective progressive regional response to the impact of the national political crisis since the 2016 elections, including the expansion of the FUND’s emerging need grants program, establishment of the field-of-interest Immigrant Legal Defense Fund and the convenings and support of emerging coalition and collaborative efforts around immigrant legal defense, environmental justice and food justice. His extensive background in nonprofit organizational development and community planning played an important leadership role in the establishment of a number of new effective philanthropic partnerships with other local, state, and nationwide foundations and in the completion of the FUND’s current five-year strategic planning process. The latter included the adoption of a revised mission, vision, strategy, and program action statements, building from the FUND’s nearly forty years of social change work to clarify its long-time role in building movements for social, economic, environmental, and political justice.

A strong commitment to the life-long practice of social learning, Marcos has sought to inform his work through decades of community organizing and policy advocacy, as well as the study and application of both social science and Native American indigenous teachings. A Sundancer in the Lakota Native American and Mexica traditions, Marcos is actively involved in efforts to expand the knowledge and application of these indigenous teachings and ceremonies in all levels of social change work.

Having earned his doctorate degree in urban planning from the University of California at Los Angeles, Marcos’s 2004 dissertation addresses the theory and practice of community transformation and the expanding public policy and community development role of racial and multi-racial community-based organizations in California. Drawing from his academic research and years of organizing experience, he has served as an adjunct professor in Urban Studies and Chicano Studies at California State University at Northridge, California State University at Channel Islands, and UCLA. A father of three, a graphic artist and dedicated trail runner, Marcos lives in Ventura, California with his wife, Robin Jacobs, and his two daughters, Maya Esperanza (age 18), Julianna Citlali (age 15). His son Canek Pena-Vargas (age 32) is a high school history teacher in Los Angeles. Robin is a third grade bilingual education teacher with the Ventura Unified School District.

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Kristin Hsu

Development Associate 

Originally from Fairfield, CA, Kristin moved to Santa Barbara in 2014 to attend UCSB where she studied Asian American Studies. Her passion for social justice and community organizing developed while she gained experience advocating against tuition hikes and developing a federal student lobbying program with Associated Students UCSB and the UC Student Association. Expand

Kristin joined the Fund for Santa Barbara in April 2018, holding positions as an intern, Administrative Assistant, and Operations Assistant before becoming the FUND’s Development Associate in October 2019.

Kristin is passionate about affordability and access in higher education, Asian American representation in politics, and gender equity. She spends her free time volunteering in local campaigns, cooking, and going to the gym.

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Lennea Lopez

Administrative Assistant  

By way of background, Lennea Lopez is a proud Latina who grew up in an activist-led household in Santa Barbara, California. Lennea graduated from Mills College in Oakland, California, where she studied Sociology and Public Policy. Expand

Lennea is especially interested in how social change and restorative justice are promoted through radically inclusive community building and the arts. Prior to joining the FUND team, Lennea interned with UC Berkeley’s Death Penalty Law Clinic and worked on strategic outreach for a race-class narrative book launch. When she’s not working (and outside of the context of a global pandemic) Lennea enjoys traveling, hula hooping, and aerial dancing.

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David Melendrez

Youth Making Change Coordinator 

David Melendrez is a Santa Maria Native who is passionate about social justice and youth empowerment. David values giving back to his community through community involvement and youth advocacy, just as he was supported through mentors. Expand

David is a graduate of UCSB with a BA in Sociology and a minor in education. Aside from being a program associate and being a coordinator of Youth Making Change while working at the Fund, David is also a Board Member of Truth In Recruitment.

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Alina Rey Keswani

Development and Communications Manager

Alina is a proud product of Santa Barbara’s interconnected community. As a first generation Mexican American cultivated in a home led by educators and community advocates, themes of social justice and educational equity have always played a central role in her framework. Believing firmly that communication and access to information are the fundamental keys to awareness and mutual understanding, Alina strives to amplify the FUND’s voice and vision for our community(s) in her role as Communications Manager Expand

Alina is a graduate of UC Davis where she double majored in Communication and International Relations. Prior to joining the FUND, she oversaw development at Storyteller Children's Center. Alina is passionate about travel and exposures to different cultures and ways of life as a means of continued education and path toward collective understanding. She is a strong supporter of the arts, particularly dance and music, and believes in the power they have to unify and shape communities. In her free time, Alina enjoys reading, writing, experiencing live music and visiting new places.

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Tania Reyes

Grants Associate

Tania is a Santa Barbara local, with Mexican and Mestizo roots. Having been raised in Santa Barbara, Tania understands the framework of the community on a deeply personal level. Social justice and progressive change are at the heart of what drives her day to day life. Prior to joining the FUND, Tania served as the 805 UndocuFund Coordinator where her commitment to social, economic, and environmental justice was fundamental in assisting a community disproportionately impacted by natural disasters. Expand

Tania is a graduate of the University of California, Irvine where she majored in Cognitive Science and Psychology. While there she led multiple organizations working to develop and implement campus initiatives to create a more inclusive environment for students.

Tania is passionate about making the world a more equitable, unified, and just place. In her free time, she can be found outdoors being grounded in nature, running, biking, dancing, or having spontaneous adventures that take her to new destinations. She has 2 cats, Phoenix and Ginger, neither of which like to cuddle with her.

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Patricia Solorio

Associate Director 

A native of Santa Maria and mother of two, Patricia has served as senior program and management staff with the Central Coast Future Leaders over the last 12 years, including her role as Executive Director since 2016. As a bilingual and bi-cultural community leader, Patricia has a profound understanding of the communities of North County. Expand

She has worked with CCFL, and held leadership roles in many local community actions and initiatives, including her service on the FUND’s Grant Making Committee and annual North County Tardeada event. Among her numerous recognitions, in 2016 Patricia received the Working Families Award from the Santa Barbara County Action Network for her many efforts to improve the lives of working families in the region.

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Hugo Valdovinos

Operations Supervisor

Hugo is a recent graduate from the University of California, Santa Barbara with a degree in History of Public Policy. Though he grew up in Fillmore, California, which is a small town east of Santa Barbara, Hugo and his family emigrated from Mexico when he was just a young boy. His family’s background in agricultural work and his exposure to their working conditions inspired Hugo to research more about migrant workers and his family’s history. Expand

The knowledge he gained about his family then developed into an interest and understanding of broader issues in his own community, both politically and culturally, which he hopes to learn more about through his work with the FUND.

Hugo also has a passion for helping younger students pursue a higher education and is excited to join the FUND as South County Coordinator for the Youth Making Change program. During his years at the university Hugo was part of the College Link Outreach Program, a program dedicated to helping underrepresented students from Los Angeles experience college through workshops, academic resources and professional connections. In his free time, he enjoys reading about philosophy and watching TED talk videos on YouTube.

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Santa Barbara Mailing Address

PO Box 90710
Santa Barbara, CA 93190-0710
(805) 962-9164

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120 East Jones Street, Suite 110
Santa Maria, CA 93454
(805) 922-1707

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