Claudia C. Alvarez was raised in our community, having lived in Santa Ana for over 34 years. She attended our local public schools including Fremont Elementary, Spurgeon Jr. High and Santiago High School. Although Alvarez started her higher education career at
California State University, Fullerton (CSUF), in biology, she soon realized that her passion to serve the public would best be realized by choosing a career in law. By taking core classes at
Santa Ana College concurrently, she went on to earn a Bachelor of Arts degree from CSUF, majoring in criminal justice with a minor in political science. She earned her Juris Doctorate Degree from Loyola Law School and was admitted to the California State Bar in 1994.
As Board President, she serves as a member of all committees. Alvarez took interest in public service early on, serving in many student organizations in high school, and being part of the Associated Student Board of Directors at CSUF. While in college, she also volunteered for crime prevention programs like the Orange County Bar Foundation’s Shortstop program and worked at the North Orange County courthouse. Law school also provided public interest opportunities for Alvarez, volunteering at the Los Angeles Legal Aid Foundation helping victims of domestic violence and at the Conflict Resolution Center at Loyola Law School, helping the surrounding community resolve conflict. In her professional life, she has served as a deputy district attorney for the County of Orange for over 20 years. She also continued to be active in many community organizations. She has been a mentor for the Puente (Bridge) and Hermanita (Little Sister) programs and has also assisted with gang prevention issues. Alvarez has served as president of the Hispanic Bar Association and as vice president of KinderCaminata, a program that introduces low-income kindergarten students to higher education through their local community colleges. She has also been president of MANA (Orange County Chapter), a national Latina organization and served as a board member of the Community Service Programs (CSP), an organization dedicated to serving Orange County residents through programs addressing issues in gang prevention, victim/witness, domestic violence, transitional housing and youth shelters. Alvarez was elected to the Santa Ana City Council in November 2000, re-elected in 2004 and in 2008 with over 78 percent of the vote. In 2002, she attended the Program for Senior Executives in State & Local Government at Harvard University’s John F. Kennedy School of Government and served as a delegate to Japan through the American Council of Young Political Leaders in October 2003. She served as mayor pro tem in Santa Ana for six years (2006-2012). Alvarez also led as chairperson of the Public Safety Committee for many years and was a member of the Transportation Committee. After twelve years of serving our community on the Santa Ana City Council, Claudia termed out in November 2012. Alvarez also served on the Orange County Water District board for six years (2006-2012), which includes serving as president the last two years of her term. Alvarez appreciates and is grateful for the opportunities her education has provided and, through her service on the Rancho Community College District board of trustees, strives to insure SAC and SCC students have the same success starting with a quality educational experience. President Alvarez can be reached by
email.
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