CLRJ Staff

Rocio L. Córdoba, J.D. – Co-Founder & Executive Director

Rocio L. Córdoba is Co-Founder and Executive Director of California Latinas for Reproductive Justice (CLRJ).  She has served as a reproductive rights/justice, gender equity and civil rights attorney and advocate on the national, state and local levels for over 16 years.  Most recently, Rocio was appointed by Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa to serve on the Los Angeles Commission on the Status of Women.  Rocio recently completed serving her second term as President of the California Coalition for Reproductive Freedom (CCRF) (2002-2006), where she has sought to promote the inclusion of diverse communities of color in its membership, advocacy and policy priorities.  She is a Founding Team member of EMERJ (Expanding the Movement for Empowerment and Reproductive Justice) and serves on the national SisterSong Women of Color Reproductive Health Collective’s Management Circle, the National Latina Institute for Reproductive Health Policy Advisory Committee, the California Family Health Council’s Board of Directors, and was a 2005-2006 Fellow with the Women’s Foundation of California’s Women’s Policy Institute, among other leadership positions.  Most recently, Rocio served as Director of Public Affairs for UCLA’s Institute for Democracy, Education & Access (IDEA).  Previously, Rocio served as a Staff Attorney with the ACLU of Southern California and as Director of its pilot Latina Rights Project; handled reproductive rights litigation and advocacy on the national level as a Staff Attorney with NOW Legal Defense and Education Fund and as a Staff Attorney Fellow with the ACLU's National Reproductive Freedom Project, both in New York; and served as the Kennedy/Coleman Fellow with the ACLU of Illinois in Chicago.  She received her J.D. from the University of California’s Hastings College of Law and B.A. degrees from the University of Southern California.

Gabriela Valle – Field Director

Gabriela Valle is the Field Director for California Latinas for Reproductive Justice (CLRJ).  Gabriela focuses on community-based education, alliance-building and mobilizing throughout key California regions to promote Latinas’ reproductive justice.  With ten years of experience in youth leadership development, Gabriela has brought a holistic focus to women's health and justice issues in all areas of her work.  Prior to joining CLRJ in September 2006, Gabriela served as Program Director for REACH LA’s HIV/AIDS peer education programs (1997-2001).  Trained in Augusto Boal's "Theater of the Oppressed," she trained about a dozen young people to use popular education in their work to improve teens’ knowledge of HIV/AIDS prevention.  Together with her youth staff, they reached over 3,500 Los Angeles teens in four years.  In her time at REACH LA, Gabriela helped to transition the curriculum to a focus on the holistic health and well-being of girls and young women.  Gabriela then went on to join a team of Program Managers at Public Allies-LA (2001-2005), where she took the lead in developing training curricula, co-training, facilitation and management of this leadership program for young adults ages 18-30.  Gabriela led trainings in the areas of Gender, Sexualities, Women's Disparity Issues, Women's Empowerment and Self-Care.  Gabriela has also conducted several dozen workshops for other agencies, conferences and events in the area of empowerment for girls, young women and young mothers.  Gabriela attended Los Angeles City College and transferred to UCLA, majoring in Chicana/o Studies.  Her activism led her to join the ranks of generations of students and faculty who fought for the establishment of the Department of Chicana/o Studies and the César E. Chávez Center for Interdisciplinary Instruction.

Nancy Sanchez – Program & Development Associate

Nancy Sanchez is Program & Development Associate for California Latinas for Reproductive Justice (CLRJ). A firm believer in social justice, Nancy has focused her work around reproductive justice, racial and gender equity. In order to address these issues, Nancy has dedicated her time to youth empowerment and education.  In 2005 she was an Intern for Planned Parenthood Los Angeles, where she taught comprehensive sex education for middle school students across Los Angeles County. From 2003 to 2005 Nancy served as Project Director for Latinas Guiding Latinas de UCLA, where she promoted higher education, cultural awareness, reproductive health, and a positive self-image for young Latinas in East Los Angeles. In addition, she has also worked for UCLA’s Institute for Democracy, Education, & Access (IDEA). Nancy graduated from UCLA in 2005, with a Bachelor of Arts degree in History and Women’s Studies with an emphasis in race, class, and gender.