Senator Padilla Recognizes Dr. Guillermina “Gina” Núñez-Mchiri as Woman of the Year in Senate District 18
SACRAMENTO – Today, Senator Steve Padilla (D-San Diego) recognized Dr. Guillermina “Gina” Núñez-Mchiri on the Senate Floor as the Woman of the Year for Senate District 18.
A trailblazing educator, Dr. Núñez-Mchiri is the first Chicana/Latina Dean of San Diego State University-Imperial Valley, the culmination of a career dedicated to empowering Latino students, advancing gender equity, and championing human rights through research, leadership, and community engagement.
“Dr. Núñez-Mchiri’s dedication to educating uplifting and empowering the next generation of Latino leaders is inspiring,” said Senator Padilla. “Her career is built on the simple, but powerful premise that future generations shouldn’t just have a seat at the table, but also a voice in shaping it. Her work was already changed the lives of her students and will change many more to come.”
Raised in the Imperial Valley, Dr. Núñez-Mchiri is the proud daughter of migrant farmworkers who instilled in her their tenacious work ethic and an unwavering sense of dedication to help others. She graduated from Calexico High School, earned a BA in International Business and an MA in Latin American Studies from San Diego State University, and completed her PhD in Cultural Anthropology at UC Riverside. She then spent 18 years at the University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP) as Director of Women and Gender Studies, Faculty Senate President, and a mentor to countless Latino students—showing them how much they could achieve through her example and guidance.
Outside of academia, Dr. Núñez-Mchiri co-founded the Latina Leadership Initiative, ensuring Latinas step into leadership and claim decision-making spaces and created Yo Soy Teatro and Ya Basta!, theater projects that gave Latina women a stage to tell their own stories and confront gender violence.
Alongside other decorated and acclaimed woman leaders, Dr. Núñez-Mchiri was recognized on the Senate Floor during the State Senate’s Woman of the Year Celebration as California honors Women’s History Month.
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Steve Padilla represents the 18th Senate District, which includes the communities of Chula Vista, the Coachella Valley, Imperial Beach, the Imperial Valley, National City, and San Diego. Prior to his election to the Senate in 2022, Senator Padilla was the first person of color ever elected to city office in Chula Vista, the first Latino Mayor, and the first openly LGBT person to serve or be elected to city office. Website of Senator Steve Padilla: https://sd18.senate.ca.gov/