Isabel was born in Ecuador. She has four children and two grandchildren. She has lived in Contra Costa County for the past thirty-seven years and is proud of her roots as well as being a Contra Costa resident.

Isabel has worked and volunteered across many systems and organizations, including the school system. Isabel retired from Mt. Diablo Unified School District in 2021 after nineteen years of service. For twelve years as a Child Welfare and Attendance Liaison, she became intimately aware and involved with families’ personal challenges to succeed within the school system. Isabel, through her passion “to serve” and from her own immigrant experience, saw the pattern of immigrant families struggling to connect across school sites, particularly for Spanish-speaking. She created opportunities for parent involvement, increased knowledge of school protocols, and empowerment.

As a community liaison for the Mt. Diablo School District, she had opportunities to learn and experience the school system across various school sites. From a District level, she had the capacity and resources to collaborate across Mt. Diablo’s large school district and was able to amplify her role by connecting families with the services they needed. She has always continued to develop ways to bridge the gaps to meet the needs of individuals and immigrant families. It is with this commitment and heart that led her to create a non-profit named GANAS Community Organization to keep serving her beloved immigrant community and other disadvantage communities. 

Dr. Ruth Fernández immigrated to the US from El Salvador when she was 17 years old with her two siblings and parents.  As a newcomer, she attended high school in San Francisco and attended the San Francisco School of the Arts (SOTA).  After high school, she attended the University of California at Berkeley where she earned a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Political Economies of Industrialized Societies. In 2019, she earned her Doctorate degree from Mills College of Oakland in Educational Leadership, with a concentration in Early Childhood Education. She also has a Master’s Degree in Leadership from St. Mary’s College of California.

Ruth’s professional background includes over 20 years of experience working with diverse stakeholders in public education, philanthropy, and the human services and policy sectors.  She is proud of her cultural heritage and her immigrant experience in the US.  This for her is a source of inspiration to give back to the Latino community and fuels her passion for community work with immigrant communities; especially first generation high school and college students seeking to make their dreams a reality.

Currently, Dr. Fernández is the Executive Director at First 5 Contra Costa where she combines her knowledge and experience working to advance integration and coordination of early childhood services. Prior to her role at First 5 Contra Costa, Ruth worked at the Contra Costa County Office of Education (CCCOE) for over 12 years managing and coordinating countywide early childhood educational services for child care providers, preschool teachers, and administrators.  

As Contra Costa residents since 1997, Ruth and her husband live in Concord and are proud contributors to the County’s human services sector helping communities most in need.

Judith Ortiz, Monument Impact’s Executive Director, has a Master of Public Administration degree and served ten years as Executive Director with Wahupa Educational Services, a nonprofit helping low-income, first-generation, and/or disabled high school students attend college, growing its budget from $1 million to $2 million throughout her tenure. She also served as a program consultant with the University of California, San Diego, supporting the organization with program management. Judith is bilingual and bicultural, bringing lived experience to her position. She was raised in Contra Costa County and resides in East Contra Costa County.