Vanessa Lopez Morales

Vanessa Lopez-Morales (Site Director) joined CISLA January 2022 bringing over a decade of community organizing. Vanessa will be supporting Hamilton High. She is excited to join the CISLA team and is looking forward to empowering students to pursue their next steps.

Vanessa has experience as a Case Manager with Safe Place for Youth. As a Case Manager she worked with at a drop-in center offering support to members that included housing and mental health resources. She also worked at Lawndale Elementary School District as a School Social Worker where she worked with students, ran groups, and provided individual therapy to students. Vanessa worked as a community organizer contracted by various campaigns. She trained trainers and coaches. Vanessa is originally from Central Valley of California. She grew up in Parlier which fueled her passion for fighting for social justice.

Vanessa attended undergrad at University of California Santa Cruz and obtained her bachelor's degree in Critical Race and Ethnic Studies. She attended University of Southern California and received her Master’s in Social Work with an emphasis in Social Change and Innovation. Vanessa enjoys hiking and traveling. She loves spending time with her wife and son. She currently resides in Culver City.