Marquez High School

Flor Chanta, a graduate of South Gate High School, holds a bachelor’s in liberal students with an emphasis in Spanish from Cal State Long Beach. She holds a teaching credential and master’s in education in cross-cultural teaching from National University and an administrative credential from Cal State Dominguez Hills.

“Education has always been a passion of mine. While in high school, I was very fortunate to have crossed paths with teachers, mentors and role models who inspired me to pursue my academic goals, so I chose a similar path and have opted to be that spark of motivation for our students. As a team, our mission is to give our students a fair and equitable opportunity to succeed and become college and career ready.”

Sergio Ceja is one of nine children and is the first in his family to attend college. Born in Mexico, Sergio immigrated to the United States when he was 2 years old. He grew up in Boyle Heights and attended Los Angeles Unified schools. He holds a bachelor’s in urban and regional planning from Cal Poly Pomona and a master’s in school counseling.  He joined LAUSD in 1993 as a counseling assistant and became an academic counselor in 1998. He joined GEAR UP in 2011.

“In high school, I was one of those students who needed guidance.  I was fortunate to be part of Upward Bound, which had passionate adults who believed in me and helped me create my own choices. GEAR UP is the Upward Bound for our students and I want to share that same passion with them. I love seeing the academic and personal growth in students and their resilient spirits that constantly overcome tremendous obstacles.”

Silvia Batres attended Middleton Elementary, Gage Middle School, and Huntington Park High School. She holds an associate in psychology from East Los Angeles College and a bachelor’s in psychology and a master’s in clinical psychology from Cal State Dominguez Hills.

“It feels great to be able to work with the Huntington Park community and be able to provide the necessary resources for students to attend college and reach their full potential. Having grown up in Huntington Park, I see myself in these high school students. I also know how important it is for these students and their families to know that GEAR UP is here to help them with the necessary resources along the way.”

Jose is a proud graduate of South East High School and graduated from East Los Angeles College AA-T in Political Science, UC Davis B.A. in International Relations, and recently received his M.Ed. in Psychological Counseling: School Counselor from Columbia University.

I have previously worked under UC Davis Undergraduate Admissions and NYC public schools. However, it is exciting to be back at LAUSD where my educational journey began.