Valeria Gómez

Valeria Gómez, MSW (Institutional Giving Director) joined CISLA in 2022 and was promoted to Institutional Giving Director in 2025 after serving as Grants Manager. In her role, Valeria leads the cultivation and stewardship of corporate, foundation, government, and community partnerships, ensuring that CISLA’s vision and impact are shared with funders whose generous support makes the mission possible.

Prior to joining CISLA, Valeria dedicated her professional career to advancing positive youth development efforts and supporting equity-focused education nonprofits. She previously worked at the City of Long Beach Health & Human Services Department, where she helped write and launch the city’s first Youth Strategic Plan and managed the disbursement of CARES relief grants for youth services. Earlier in her career, she served as Foundation Manager at City Scholars® Foundation, supporting education nonprofits across Greater Los Angeles to strengthen leadership and accelerate organizational impact. She also worked at Spark Los Angeles, a career exploration program connecting middle school students with mentor companies such as Warner Bros. Studios and Gensler, where she led programming at Bethune Middle School in South Los Angeles.

Valeria holds a Master’s in Social Work degree from the University of Southern California (USC), with a concentration in Social Change and Innovation. As a proud first-generation college graduate, she earned her B.A. in English Literature and Latin American & Latino Studies from UC Santa Cruz. In her free time, Valeria enjoys watching horror films and traveling to new cities.