This year’s UTLA Unsung Heroes showed exemplary fortitude and leadership in using the power of organizing to stand up for what is right. Whether organizing their sites to stand up to tyrannical administrators, force a charter co-location off their campus, or fight for the resources and support their students need, these members are building power for the public schools we all deserve.

NORTH AREA

Emily Ponce & Tanya Reyes 

Emily Ponce is a stand-out educator at Plasencia Elementary and a kick-ass organizer. Emily is a dedicated member of the North Area Steering Committee, organizing her clusters and her school, and contributing to the overall vibrancy and militancy of our area. She is a fierce advocate for LGBTQIA+ rights, Palestine, and UTLA and school board campaigns. Emily built strong relationships with SEIU Local 99 members and empowered community during our last strike and maintained those relationships. She models collective leadership and inspires us all.

Tanya Reyes is an English and ELD teacher who teaches pregnant and parenting teens at McAlister High School. On any given day, you’ll find her raising literacy rates of the students she serves, while teaching them breastfeeding techniques; running drives to secure free diapers, car seats, strollers, and children’s clothing; and helping students find safe housing. She has courageously combatted sex trafficking of youth at LAUSD. Tanya does all this while mothering three young children of her own and serving as UTLA Chapter Chair and on the UTLA Housing Task Force.  

SOUTH AREA

Sydne Marx & Elise Pepe

Sydne Marx and Elise Pepe truly have gone above and beyond as Chapter Chair and Vice Chair at Flournoy Elementary School. Together, these amazing union leaders have stood strong and brought to light the injustice occurring at their school that was impacting member morale and undermining the educational program.

Sydne and Elise have bravely fought to bring better working conditions to educators while improving learning conditions for students. They are an example of union leadership that promotes our teaching profession while building solidarity among union members. It is South Area’s pleasure to announce them as our Unsung Heroes.

EAST AREA

Kyoko Bristow & Marsha Jauregui

Wherever there is a need to organize, Kyoko Bristow is there. She is a dedicated and passionate chapter leader for Language and Speech and an active parent member of Bravo Medical Magnet’s LSLC, where she was instrumental in pushing back on testing schedules and budget inequities. At Malabar Elementary, she organized alongside her Chapter Chair to fight co-location. She has been instrumental in helping itinerants become more visible and involved in their UTLA areas, and she leads with compassion, patience, and a strong sense of unity.

Marsha Jauregui is an up-and-coming UTLA East Area leader. She has been a Chapter Chair at Belvedere Elementary for the past eight years. Marsha successfully organized her site and led 100% of UTLA members on the picket line during the 2019 UTLA Strike and 97% of members during the Solidarity Strike in 2023. In 2023-2024 Marsha led her school in becoming a Community School. It has been an emotional and challenging battle because transformation at a worksite is not easy, but Marsha has not waivered in her commitment to complete the Community School process. Along with support from other UTLA members, UTLA staff, and parents, Belvedere is now 100% a Community School.

WEST AREA

Stephanie Johnson & Richard Hall 

Stephanie Johnson and Richard Hall have been chapter leaders at Marlton School for the past seven years. During this time, they helped organize staff, parents, and community members to fight back against unjust policies towards Deaf students. In 2018, they successfully organized to have a lemon principal removed from Marlton. They continue to fight for the rights of students, staff, and community members to ensure equitable and accessible education for Deaf students.

CENTRAL AREA

Trip Hope & Lupe Torres

Trip Hope does not back down when he knows what is right. As a substitute teacher, he knew it was the law that substitutes receive 40 hours of sick time. When the district chose to ignore this law, Trip pushed forward, contacting the Labor Board and helping get this corrected. Now he is dealing with the implementation. Trip has also been very active in leading the pickets at 32nd Street during the strikes. He has continuously staffed Central Area phone banks to recruit nonmembers, keeping Central’s union membership incredibly high. He is tireless in his advocacy. 

Lupe doesn’t back down when she knows what is right, especially with “bully principals.” Her principal docked her pay when she was out sick for one day (without a doctor’s note). She reached out to the Labor Board and, in conjunction with her UTLA Area rep, she helped the region learn that administration was so out of line that she won her pay back immediately without even meeting on a grievance. Lupe has become a grievance-writing expert, helping many win their fights against public reprimands, below standard evaluations, and more.

VALLEY EAST AREA

Beth Morris & Maggie Saldivar 

Our Valley East Unsung Heroes are young, new and each went through a “baptism by fire.” Beth Morris has been a Chapter Chair for only two years, but she came into it facing one of the worst principals in the district, whom the district had to transfer from West Region to the Valley. It took Beth two years organizing her staff and parents, but she led the charge and forced the district to finally get her principal transferred out of Stonehurst Elementary.

This was Maggie Saldivar’s first year as Chapter Chair, but she’s gone through an experience at Ranchito that few long-time Chapter Chairs have dealt with. Maggie’s lemon principal was only there five months, but in that time this administrator created one of the most hostile working environments the school had ever seen. It was so bad, Maggie was able to hold a Vote of No Confidence and had a 75% vote against the principal. The principal is not gone yet, but we’re still putting pressure on the district to get rid of her this summer. UPDATE: On the last day the office was open, the Local Superintendent decided that our case was so strong, he agreed to move this lemon principal out of Ranchito!

VALLEY WEST AREA

Christy Moore

Christy Moore is a Chapter Chair at Sunny Brae Elementary. This year, she recruited and organized educators, parents, and students against co-location at her school site, and they won! She held her challenging school administration accountable when they were not being transparent about the co-location process and helped organize an action at the Magnolia Charter Board Meeting. On top of that, Christy has been an amazing cluster leader for Valley West. 

HARBOR AREA

Darius Frelix

Darius Frelix is the Chapter Chair at Peary Middle School. Darius has worked tirelessly with the CAT, colleagues, students, and community members to shed light on the bully tactics of their administrators, while being targeted by them. Through the power of collective action, Darius and Peary have established their LSLC, picketed on behalf of students, and built solidarity with their community partners.

Alliance Charter Educators

UTLA CHARTER EDUCATORS

Since filing for union recognition — with Gertz-Merkin and Burton Tech filing for recognition in 2018 and ESAT and Morgan McKinzie filing for recognition in 2019 — Alliance educators have continued to press on in their fight for their union to be recognized and for their demands to be taken seriously by Alliance College Ready Public Schools. 

Despite Alliance’s charter management organization spending millions on a vicious anti-union campaign and for years ignoring multiple legal orders from the state Public Employment Relations Board (PERB) to come to the bargaining table, Alliance educators have bolstered their union strength by participating in a one-day strike, packing the room for open bargaining and for Alliance’s board meeting with educators, leafleting parents, and leading walk-ins during the contract campaign. 

Alliance educators have been fighting for years and will continue fighting for the first contract they deserve. We cannot be more proud of their clear demonstrations of resilience, grit, and union power.