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School Board Members

 

 

Ernie Nishii board member photo

Ernie Nishii
President

of the Board
Trustee Area 3
Elected - 2017

Mr. H. Ernie Nishii was born in East Los Angeles (Boyle Heights) and raised in Santa Ana, attending a very diverse Saddleback High School. At 10, he started a gardening business, which he used to help pay his way through college.  He graduated with a BA in Political Science at the University of California, Riverside, and shortly after that entered and graduated UCLA Law School, passing the California Bar in 1992.

 

He is a husband and a father.  At Leal Elementary School, he was part of the LEAP Foundation and grew an afterschool program that was at the core of Leal’s Blue Ribbon designation.  He helped create the Winter Arts Festival, which enabled special kids to be part of the school community.  Leading the foundation, he improved finances, improved participation, and grew a new bank of leaders to continue the next generation.  He has participated in the Whitney Summer Academy and Foundation fundraisers and is a past member of the Whitney Foundation for Educational Excellence, Whitney PTSA, and past Chair for the Safe and Modern Schools Measure BB committee. BB now provides 256 million dollars in needed modernized school facilities and safety enhancements.

 

Mr. Nishii is currently a director on the Southeast Japanese School & Community Center Board, Tuna Canyon Detention Station board, and volunteer legal counsel for Historic Wintersburg. He wants our education to be multidimensional and passionate. His family was incarcerated during WWII, and he remembers stories his grandfather told about what happened. When history is only in our books and not in our hearts—we forget and repeat the sins of our past. Quality education can enable us to rise above this. Recognizing that ABC is an excellent school district, he works to be a partner with administrators, teachers, staff, parents, and the community to make our schools even better. 

 

Email address: [email protected]

 

 

 

 

 

Francisco Noyola

Francisco Noyola

Vice President

of the Board
Trustee Area 7
Elected - 2024

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Mr. Francisco Noyola grew up in Hawaiian Gardens and Norwalk attending Hawaiian Elementary, Los Alisos Middle School (Norwalk La-Mirada USD) and Gahr High School. Francisco Noyola earned an associates degree and was on the State Champion Wrestling Team for Cerritos College before transferring to California State University of Long Beach, graduating with a Bachelors in Psychology.

 

Francisco Noyola started his career as a Recreation Leader for the City of Hawaiian Gardens working directly with local youth as a coach, after school tutor, and park rover. Francisco Noyola pursued a career as a paralegal and case analyst working in the areas of employment, criminal justice, and immigration law before finding his current role with the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health, Office of Violence Prevention. In this role Francisco Noyola works to connect and create partnerships with community residents and stakeholders to implement the Trauma Prevention Initiative (TPI). This Initiative is being implemented in both Hawaiian Gardens and Norwalk to align County services and initiatives to build a comprehensive, place-based approach through innovative programs, policies, and partnerships to reduce violence-related injuries and deaths.

 

Francisco Noyola is very involved within both communities of Hawaiian Gardens and Norwalk working to create solutions to empower families facing challenges that exist in both communities, for students to learn in a safe and successful learning environment. As an advocate for Community Violence Intervention, he hopes to create solutions to systemic issues through multi-disciplinary systems that focus on community data-driven strategies that are backed with peer-reviewed researched models and evaluated by experts in the field.

 

In his free time Francisco enjoys weight training, cooking, and spending time with his two dogs (Misty and Oreo) and family.

 

Email address: [email protected]

 

 

 

Tatiana Yokoyama Bui
Clerk of the Board
Trustee Area 4
Appointed 2024

 

Photo and bio to come. 

 

 

Dr. Olga Rios
Dr. Olga Rios
Member of the Board
Trustee Area 6
Elected - 2017
 

Dr. Olga Rios attended ABC schools. She attended Hawaiian Elementary, Fedde Middle School, and graduated from Artesia High School. Since then, she attained a Bachelor's degree from California State University Long Beach; a Master's Degree from Harvard University; a Teaching Credential from UCLA extensions; an Administrative Credential from UC Irvine; and a Doctorate Degree from USC's Educational Leadership Program. She beat the odds and knowns others can too.

 

She is also an involved parent. The city of Lakewood has been her home for the past twenty-two years and has been a great place to rise her two children. Her daughter attended ABC schools and graduated from Artesia High School in 2017. Before that, her daughter attended Carmenita Middle School and Leal Elementary. Her son is also making his way through ABC. Participating in her children's education has been a priority for her. She has served on PTA, been PTSA President, and served on School Site Council Committees. She knows the value of parent participation.

 

Dr. Rios is an advocate for children. Currently, she is a Director for Student Services for a nearby district. Before that, she was a teacher for sixteen years and school administrator for eight years. Dr. Rios believes that her success can only be truly meaningful if she helps others. This has been her mission as a teacher, an administrator, and will be as a Board Member. She understands the importance of preparing all ABC students to be college and or career ready.

 

In her free time, Dr. Rios enjoys reading, watching her son play baseball, and spending time with her daughter, who is a graduate of CSU San Francisco.

 

Email address: [email protected]

 

 

 
Leticia Mendoza
Member of the Board
Trustee Area 1
Elected - 2024
Leticia “Letty” Mendoza is a lifelong educator who has dedicated her life to student success, community service, and providing a helping hand to those most in need in our community.
 
A product of public schools, Letty earned a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Child Development and a Multiple Subject Teaching Credential from California State University, Los Angeles.
 
A second-generation educator, Letty has been a local elementary school teacher for the last 27 years.  She comes from a family of educators and her husband was also a teacher; in fact, they met while teaching at the same elementary school.
 
Additionally, Letty was the secretary and co-founder of a non-profit organization, the Southern California LEAD Foundation. The foundation’s mission is to improve the quality of life of the South East Los Angeles County residents through programs, projects, sponsorships and scholarships based on Leadership, Education, Advancement, and Development.
 
Letty has also been very involved as a parent in the ABC Unified School District.  She was a parent volunteer at Niemes Elementary School and is a past president of Ross’ Colorguard Parent Group.  She and her family annually support and sponsor local community programs that benefit families and students.
 
In addition to her involvement with ABC USD, Letty has also been involved civically in her community.  She was a member of the Artesia Parent Volunteer Group, which supports the City of Artesia's Parks & Recreation Department by raising funds and volunteers at community events.  She served as the Team Mom for 3 years on her son’s baseball team at Artesia Park.  
 
Letty took the next step in her journey of community service by being the first Artesian to serve on the ABC USD School Board to represent the City of Artesia from 2014 to 2020.  In her first term Letty:
-    Passed Measure BB, the $258 million school facilities improvement bond passed by voters in November 2018, to Improve and Modernize our classrooms for the jobs of tomorrow
-    Recruited and Retained the Best and Brightest teachers and support staff for our classrooms
-    Ensured ABC USD continues to be one of the Top 10 school districts in the state
-    Continued successful District – Union Partnership to produce solutions that were reached in the best interests of everyone involved
 
With the support of local teachers, parents, and activist, Letty was re-elected to the ABC USD School Board in 2024, to restore the voice of parents, students and teachers on the School Board.  With her experience as a public-school teacher and former school board member, she brings common-sense solutions to the District’s most complex problems.  She will be a voice for all of Artesia, and the District.  
 
Letty is a mother of four children (one which currently attends ABC schools and three who are ABCUSD graduates). She is married to former State Senator Tony Mendoza.
 

 

 

Sophia Tse photoSophia Tse
Member of the Board
Trustee Area 5
Elected - 2007
Mrs. Sophia Tse was elected to the ABC Board in 2007, re-elected in 2011, 2015, 2020, and again in 2024.  Sophia Tse teaches at Compton College. She also has instructor licenses in Adult Advanced Life Support, Pediatric Advanced Life Support, Neonatal Resuscitation Program lead instructor, and STABLE Program.  Before that, Mrs. Tse was a Clinical Nurse Specialist and Pediatric Nurse Practitioner.  She worked at UCLA in a management position and retired from St Francis Medical Center after 30 years.  She taught at Cal State Long Beach and Dominguez colleges for a total of 12 years.  Sophia has been a resident of Cerritos for 37 years.  All three of her children attended ABC schools. Sophia was involved in her children's schools as a PTSA board member at Carmenita MS and Whitney HS, chairwoman at Whitney HS Chinese PTSA, and volunteer nurse practitioner for Cerritos HS soccer teams. She has served in the community through the following organizations: Chairwoman and Board Member of the Southern California Chinese Culture Association; coach, first aid provider for City of Cerritos soccer teams, team mom for Cerritos Soccer Club, a participant in the March of Dimes Program for Premature Infants, and community instructor for basic life support and parenting classes. Mrs. Tse was the liaison to the Career Technical Education Ad Hoc Board Advisory Committee and many others.  She was president for APISBMA. She believes that educational instruction should develop all aspects of the student, including the physical, intellectual, social, and psychological aspects, in order to create a well-rounded individual. She strongly feels that success in a student's education can only occur through strong parental involvement and participation.  In her free time, Mrs. Tse enjoys reading, flower arrangement, line dance, growing vegetables, Neighborhood Watch, and also babysitting her two new grandsons.

 

Email address: [email protected]

 

 

 

Soo Yoo photo
Soo Yoo
Member of the Board
Trustee Area 2
Elected - 2013

Mrs. Soo Yoo is the Founder and Director of an after school Tutoring and College preparatory academy since 1994. Soo earned her Bachelor's Degree from the University of California Irvine and a Master’s Degree in Counseling from Westminster Theological Seminary. Soo is fluent in English, Spanish, and Korean languages.

 

Soo has extensive experience as a College Admission Consultant,   newspaper education columnist, speaker for PTA sponsored college prep seminars at ABC Schools, and Committee Member on the City of Cerritos’ Let Freedom Ring Committee.

 

She is also a member of PTA at Wittmann Elementary and served on the School Site Council at Gahr High School. Additionally, she served as a girl’s volunteer basketball coach for the City of Cerritos Park and Recreation.

 

In 2007, Soo founded the American Red Cross, Gateway Chapter. She is the Artesia/Cerritos Annual Team Sponsor for American Cancer Society-Relay for Life since 2008. Soo is an advisor to the Mid-City Korean Senior Association.

 

A Cerritos resident since 1996, Soo is married to Sam, a Pastor, for 22 years. They have four children:  Hannah, Amy, Rachel, and Abigail. They all attended, or attend ABC Schools at Wittmann Elementary, Carmenita Middle School, and Gahr High School. 

 

Email address: [email protected]