History

Rosie is a first-generation Chicana Mexican-American having grown up in the Central Valley of California where her parents were fruit pickers and labored on different farms throughout the state. She's the first in her generation of family to obtain an education beyond the elementary school level and now joins 7% of the Latine population that holds a master's degree. She attributes her success to the dedication of after-school and summer youth programs where she was first encouraged to look into a college path as a possibility.

Soon after college and while being employed, Rosie experienced housing instability. She followed all the steps needed to be successful in her transition out of school, but it was evident that the system itself was not prepared for someone in her circumstance. During this time, Rosie worked at a homeless youth organization that focused on wrap-around services such as drop-in, education, case management, transitional housing, and drug rehabilitation. This was part of a coalition of providers that partnered on things such as shelter and intake. Her experience in this world provided invaluable lessons about the importance of systemic interventions and partnership alignment. She earned her masters in organizational systems and has focused her energies on ensuring every new generation of students has a better system in place for their success.

Present

In addition to her elected role within the Metro Parks Tacoma Board of Commissioners, Rosie serves as the Director of Operations for Foundation for Tacoma Students supporting organizational structure, strategic alignment, and the professional development of the organization. She was previously the Associate Director of Collective Action where she was able to work with many community-based organizations to center the needs of students and families in aligning towards a community that serves youth cradle to career.  Her biggest accomplishment in the work relates to the passing of SB 5321--the auto-enrollment of the College Bound Scholarship.  Rosie worked in concert with community-based organizations, school counselors, advocacy experts, and representatives to impact the lives of an annual estimate of 10,000 families across the state. It's because of success in this strategy and similar work that Rosie firmly believes in the impact of partnerships as a means to work smarter for a better future.

Currently, Rosie serves on the American Leadership Forum (ALF) board, a non-profit organization, national in scope, dedicated to joining and strengthening diverse, influential leaders to better serve the public good. ALF enhances leadership capacity by building on the strengths of diversity, understanding and leveraging differences, and promoting collaborative problem-solving within and among communities.

Rosie also has a deep passion for the outdoors and nature habitat, having served on the Nature and Environment Advisory Board for Metro Parks.  Through her elected role, she is also the Vice-Chair of the Joint Municipal Action Committee, which brings together elected leaders from several municipalities across Tacoma/Pierce County and focuses on topics where there could be stronger alignment and collaboration to better serve residents. 

She previously served as the chair of the Tacoma Arts Commission before being elected into office as a Park Board Commissioner. Rosie was also involved with the Vibrant Schools steering committee to build a stronger advocacy community for better policy representation.