Jora Atienza-Washington, Director of North Beach-Chinatown Beacon
Jora has been a nonprofit leader with almost 20 years experience working in Bay Area public schools and social service organization. She served as Senior Program Director with Oakland Asian Students Educational Services and as an After-School Learning Site Coordinator with Mission Learning Center and the San Francisco Unified School District. Jora is proud to have been an AmeriCorps volunteer for two years, where she worked with and coached SFUSD teachers to improve their classroom practice. She has also been involved with the Youth Development Peer Network/Youth Worker Collective as a Steering Committee member and was selected as one of 50 statewide Peer Mentors for California Afterschool Network’s Statewide Mentoring Project. She grew up in the Philippines and Los Angeles and holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Italian with a minor in Linguistic Anthropology from UCLA and a Master’s in Public Administration from University of San Francisco. Jora has been with Telegraph Hill Neighborhood Center for 8 years and has been the Beacon Director of the North Beach-Chinatown Beacon Center at Francisco Middle School for 7 years.Here are a few special appreciations from her Executive Director, Principal, and the San Francisco Beacon Initiative:
"Jora is a fierce advocate for children and a great leader of people. TEL HI’s success in the field of child development is due in large part to the drive, passion and commitment that Jora brings to work every day!" – Nester Fernandez, Executive Director of Tel Hi Neighborhood Center
"Jora is an amazing Beacon Director. Jora always puts the students first and she is extremely organized and highly effective at overseeing the Francisco Beacon program." – Patrick West, Principal of Francisco Middle School
"As the most veteran Beacon Director, Jora shows her leadership at her site, her agency, and among Beacon Directors. She is always available for mentorship and thought partnering, and still always has fresh eyes for new ideas and directions. She is an amazing asset to the entire Beacon Network." - SFBI
We appreciate you, Jora!#CoordinatorsRock