Josefina E. Canchola is currently the Director of Secondary Programs for the Puente Project, overseeing all the middle and high school programs in the state. She started with Puente in 2001 and has held various roles including: Regional Project Coordinator, Associate Director of Regional Centers and Associate Director of Partnerships. Josefina has a Bachelors Degree in Sociology from UCR Riverside and a Masters Degree in Management from The University of Phoenix. She also holds a Certificate on California Politics from the University of Southern California. Josefina previously worked for UCR in the Chicano Student Programs Office and the Office of Governmental and Community Relations. Furthermore she worked for The City of Riverside's City Manager's Department and Riverside Unified School District as the Community Services Manager. Josefina is very active in community work and currently serves as Trustee for Area Three for the Whittier Union High School District where she holds a leadership position on the board as the Clerk of the Board. Josefina is also the President-Elect for UCR's Alumni Association, the first Latina to hold this position not only for this campus, but for any UC campus. Her activism has earned her recognitions including President Barack Obama's Community Service Award, The Woman of the Year Award for the 57th Assembly District and Riverside County's Hispanic Heritage Award.