Our People

Each of us contributes to the Northwest Center's mission to respond to the needs of our community, and share our values to be resident-led, relational, responsive, data-driven, and innovate.

Interested in joining the team?

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Administration & Finance

  • A woman with long blonde hair, wearing a grey t-shirt with a geometric design, a star necklace, and small earrings, looking at the camera with a smiling expression, against a plain white background.

    Angela Fontes, Ph.D., AFC® | Executive Director

  • A woman with shoulder-length dark brown hair smiling, wearing a gray t-shirt with a red design, earrings, and minimal makeup, against a white background.

    Lauren Gonzales | Director

  • A woman with black hair, smiling, wearing a black and white geometric patterned blouse, against a white background.

    Claudia Bravo | Senior Manager

  • A smiling young man with a goatee, earrings, and a nose piercing, wearing a beige collared shirt with a brown collar, against a plain white background.

    Yuan Moreno | Digital Marketing Manager

  • Portrait of a woman wearing glasses and a black blazer with a patterned top, smiling against a white background.

    Raquel Cruz | Manager

Community Education

  • A woman with long dark hair smiling at the camera, wearing a striped blazer over a white top, against a plain white background.

    Yeni Pinedo | Director

  • A young woman with long dark hair, smiling, wearing a pink sweater, isolated on a white background.

    Reyna Rodriguez | Senior Manager

  • Close-up portrait of a woman with long black hair, wearing a gray top, smiling softly against a white background.

    Ana Lorenzana | Senior Manager

  • portrait of a woman with dark hair, wearing a striped blue jacket and gold jewelry, against a white background.

    Veronica Tabares | Manager

  • A smiling man with light skin, blonde hair, a beard, and mustache wearing a black beanie and a plaid shirt against a white background.

    Jesse Livingston | Manager

  • Close-up portrait of a woman with long black hair wearing a gray collared shirt against a white background.

    Erika Amaya | Manager

  • A man with glasses and a beard wearing a dark suit and shirt, smiling at the camera.

    Alejandro Pocoroba | Associate

Community Health

  • A young woman with long, curly dark hair and glasses smiling at the camera.

    Juvilee Hernandez | Senior Manager

  • A woman with brown wavy hair, wearing glasses, large hoop earrings, and a black top with white embroidery, smiling against a plain white background.

    Linda Peters, Ed.D. | Senior Manager

  • A woman with dark curly hair and light skin, wearing a red sweater and layered gold necklaces, looking at the camera against a plain white background.

    Cindy Santana | Manager

  • Portrait of a middle-aged man with short dark hair, wearing a grey t-shirt, smiling slightly, against a white background.

    Salvador Mendoza | Associate

Community Support Services

  • Close-up of a woman with light brown skin, long hair, black glasses, and wearing a gray shirt, facing slightly to the right against a white background.

    Carmen Landecho | Director

  • A woman with dark brown hair, glasses, and light skin, smiling slightly, wearing a black top and a light gray blazer against a plain white background.

    Cassandra Hernandez | Senior Manager

  • A woman with long dark hair, wearing a black blazer and a patterned blouse, smiling slightly against a plain white background.

    Migdalia Vazquez | Senior Manager

  • Headshot of a smiling man with dark hair, beard, and mustache, wearing a gray zip-up jacket with a logo, against a white background.

    Edwin Pinto | Housing Counselor

  • A woman with short hair painted green on top, wearing a gray t-shirt and earrings, smiling against a white background.

    Joanna Kwiatwolski | Housing Counselor

  • A smiling woman with dark hair, wearing a red blouse and drop pearl earrings, against a white background.

    Roxana Pereira, AFC® | Financial Counselor

Organizing

  • Portrait of a woman smiling, wearing glasses, a blue top, and a black cardigan, with long brown hair and jewelry, against a white background.

    Esther Martinez | Manager

  • Close-up of smiling elderly man with gray hair wearing a dark green sweater against a white background.

    Ernie Lukasik | Organizer

Data & Research

  • Portrait of a woman smiling, wearing glasses, a blue top, and a black cardigan, with long brown hair and jewelry, against a white background.

    Noreen Sugrue, Ph.D. | Senior Data Research Fellow

Board of Directors

  • Black and white photo of a smiling young woman with short, wavy hair, wearing a light-colored top and a dark cardigan.

    Sasha Ongtengco | Chair +

  • Black and white portrait of a woman with long hair, wearing a necklace and a T-shirt, smiling slightly.

    Dr. Angela Fontes | Executive Director +

  • Black and white portrait of a woman smiling, with long dark hair, wearing a dark top and a delicate necklace.

    Laura Trejo | Secretary +

  • A young man with curly hair, glasses, and a goatee, smiling widely, wearing a white shirt and black tie.

    Zair Menjivar | Member +

  • A woman smiling, wearing large dark sunglasses, a light-colored jacket, and a light scarf around her neck.

    Diana Mireles | Member +

  • Black and white photo of a smiling man with a beard, short hair, wearing a hoodie.

    Joshua Ponce | Member +

Our Commitment To Racial Equity

Remembering Ruben Olivares

NWC remembers and honors our beloved Health Equity Program Manager, Ruben Olivares, who tragically passed away on January 23, 2023, from gun violence. Ruben was a genuine, loving, thoughtful, sincere, and admired person by his community and all those who shared a moment with him. Anyone who met Ruben can tell you a story about his generosity, his laughter, smile, and friendliness. Ruben worked on the Health Equity team to impact thousands of community residents with vaccine access, resiliency training, and healthy food access. We hold his memory in all that we do.

Extended Family

 

Parent Mentor Coordinators

Our Parent Mentor Program provides in-class, personalized support across seven local public schools. Every year we organize 40+ parents who ensure that every child receives crucial individual attention — socially, emotionally, and academically.

Erika Rodriguez | Marvin Camras

Rosalba Blanco | Northwest Middle

Christina Guzman | Hanson Park

Marciela Mercado | Schubert

Marlene Trujillo | Jorge Prieto

Maria Isabel Molina | Belmont Cragin

Angelica Zamarripa | Mary Lyon

Evelin Del Pilar | Lloyd

My CHI. My Future. Interns

Our youth interns are dedicated to improving the quality of life for youth in Belmont Cragin. They accomplish this by organizing events, stakeholder meetings, workshops, and more!

Javier Lemer

Dayanara Gonzalez

Jasmin Segura

Wendolyn Garcia

Immigration Navigators

Our immigration work is possible thanks to our dedicated Community Navigators.

Adela Hernandez

Byanka Obispo

Gloria Jimenez

Leticia Ojeda

Maria Azucena Leon

Raysa Feliz

Rosa Loya

Sarai Popoca

Silvia Manzanares