We have bittersweet news! After 17 years of service and partnership, Luis Chavez is moving on from CLP to new and exciting opportunities.
Luis has been with CLP since its very early years. He helped grow our CLP familia, and we’ve leaned on (and learned from) his relationship-building superpowers. A lifelong advocate for student equity, Luis has been a vital connection to college practitioners, education leaders, community partners, and students across the state.
We’ve achieved so much together. Luis has been instrumental in CLP’s work—supporting community college redesign with guided pathways, building bridges to postsecondary education with the Career Advancement Academies and the California Community Colleges Linked Learning Initiative, and much, much more. As part of numerous California Career Pathways Trust regional consortia, Luis helped bring together high school and college counselors in support of students in college and career pathways. Building on these counselor communities, Luis then led the effort to launch CLP’s statewide California Counseling Network (CACN). He initiated a new project on Equitable Counseling. He also facilitated professional development for faculty and staff as well as transformational change efforts at dozens of community college campuses over the years.
Not to worry, though. Luis will still be a force for change in our system. He’ll be continuing his work as an adjunct counseling faculty member at Berkeley City College, starting doctoral studies at the University of Maryland and launching a new nonprofit venture, FirstGen America, aimed at empowering underserved college students.
Even as Luis is moving into his new roles, we’re grateful to be able to say “see you soon” instead of farewell. CLP will be co-presenting with him at a Strengthening Student Success post-conference workshop in October, and we’re looking forward to future opportunities to collaborate.
Read Luis’s blog post on his CLP journey and next steps.