Law & Public Service Magnet Faculty

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Branda Casanova is the daughter of immigrant parents from Guadalajara and Zacatecas, Mexico.  She grew up in Lennox - a community located between Inglewood and Hawthorne, California.  Her parents worked long hours to help our family survive, and many educators' classrooms became her second home.  The educators she grew up with, displayed a deep caring for all students in her community and inspired her passion for teaching.  Growing up in Lennox, and witnessing injustice and poverty, impacted her desire to create long-lasting positive change in her community and the world. 

After high school, Brenda decided to attend California State University, Fullerton. There, she studied Philosophy and English.   With both majors, she was able to merge her love of learning and literature.  Alongside mentors, community members, friends, and family, she developed her passion for activism and decided to become an educator.  At UCLA, she completed her Master's in Education with concentration in Ethnic Studies.  Ethnic Studies helped her understand that all communities' struggles are connected.  She learned to deeply love and take pride in my roots and where she comes from, in order to honor and celebrate the communities of her students.  Continuously, Ethnic Studies helped her name the systems of oppression that impact our communities, so that we can tear them down to build a more just, joyful, and loving world. 

Her teaching career really began at Roosevelt High School in the fall of 2018, and she couldn't be more grateful to work in such beautiful community.  As an English teacher she can't wait to continue to build loving, critical, and caring relationships so that collectively, we can continue to positively transform the world around us! 

Ms. Diazcataño is a Social Studies teacher, she goes by Ms. Cataño (she/her pronouns). She was born and raised in the neighborhood of Barrio Logan in San Diego, CA. The daughter of immigrants, her family has experienced both sides of the immigrant experience, from family members deported to some acquiring US citizenship. Ms. Cataño considers herself from the bordertown, having spent considerable time of her childhood between San Diego and Tijuana.

As a first-generation college student, she attended the University of New Mexico on full scholarship, majoring in Philosophy with a minor in Chicana/o Studies.  After college she worked for two immigrant rights organizations, in New Mexico and Alabama. It was her work experience with immigrant rights and youth activism where she realized she wanted to teach. 

She moved back to California to attend graduate school at UCLA and became a social studies teacher with LAUSD. At her previous school she was the Policy Debate coach, sponsored the senior class activities, took students to a debate tournament in China, was a member of the PTSA, among other extra-curricular activities. 

She is excited to be joining the RHS LPS community in the Fall 2022.  
She lives in Boyle Heights with her partner and two young children.  

She speaks Spanish, English and Brazilian Portuguese.

Mr. Lopez serves Roosevelt High School as a Social Studies teacher, Community Outreach Coordinator, and the Arts Lead.  He has been teaching since 2002, after graduating from UCLA's Teacher Education Program.  In 2009 he earned a second master's degree and administrative credential from UCLA's Principal Leadership Institute. 

He is most passionate about teaching Ethnic Studies that address culture and voices of youth of color, community history, social movements, and racial justice.  Mr. Lopez has sponsored social justice students clubs and continues to collectively work with the community organizations, activists, and cultural workers. 

Mr. Lopez is a National Board Certified teacher, a member of LAUSD's Ethnic Studies Leadership Team and an Instructional Leader for the the California Teachers Association, working to push for the implementation of Ethnic Studies across the state. 

Mr. Lopez recently received his Ph.D. in Education with an emphasis in teaching learning, and culture from Claremont Graduate University.   His dissertation focuses on the impact of ethnic studies on high school Latinx youth, and examines Ethnic Studies curriculum and pedagogy that centers youth narratives and testimonies. 

Mr. Lopez has co-authored a book, articles, and chapters on ethnic studies and critical pedagogies.  His interests also include community activism, social justice education, critical race theory, and humanizing pedagogies. 

Ms. Alcala was born and raised in Boyle Heights Los Angeles, CA. She is the daughter of two amazing Zacatecanos who left their pueblo to give their sons and daughters a better way of life. She attended Euclid Elementary School, Stevenson Middle School, and Roosevelt once upon a

time. After high school Ms. Alcala was the second child to attend college and proudly attended California State University of Los Angeles.

During her college experience she learned about physical disabilities and created a passion to make sure that every student receives an equal opportunity in education. 

She graduated in 2016 with a Bachelor’s degree in Adapted Physical Education, has a minor in Rehabilitation Services and has a Teaching Credential in Physical Education. Ms. Alcala will begin her second-year teaching and first year here at Roosevelt High School in which she is extremely excited to give back to her community. She is bilingual and speaking Spanglish most of the time. She is extremely excited to start teaching were she once was a student and hopes to meet you all soon.

Romina Zingapan Ramos was born in the Philippines. Her mom, an aunt and uncles were in the field of education and knew at a young age that she

also will be a teacher. She always loved science but inspired by her Chemistry teacher in high school to be a high school Chemistry teacher.

College years were challenging for Mrs Ramos but with financial support from a scholarship, she graduated with a Bachelor of Secondary Education

major in Chemistry and Biology at Saint Louis University from Baguio City, Philippines. Her first teaching job at 21 years old was an elementary

teacher at a small private school away from home. In that same year, she passed her board exam and was offered a position in her high school

alma mater to teach Chemistry. Mrs. Ramos taught regular Chemistry and Advanced Chemistry classes to students who wished to pursue science

in College.

As a learner and educator, Mrs. Ramos believes that every child is unique and learns in different ways. As she teaches science, she challenges

students to be curious, critical thinkers, and evaluators. She hoped that students find relevance and connection between the subject and the real

world. She also joined professional science clubs and soon became part of the leadership team. Mrs. Ramos was also given some opportunity to

study during the summer to enhance her teaching with nationally acclaimed teachers in the Philippines. In return, she also trained teachers at a

regional level. Between all of these, she took a Master in Chemistry but was not able to complete her thesis because a great opportunity knocked

her door in 2007 (something she never imagined would happen). She was accepted for a teaching job at LAUSD from Los Angeles, USA.

After 13 years, here is Mrs Ramos writing these memories of her journey to Roosevelt High School. In July 2007 she started her very first class at

A302 as a Chemistry and ICS teacher. She still vividly remembers how that year was to be in this country, 7300 miles away from her family with

new culture and faces surrounding her. Though it was hard, staff and teachers at RHS made her feel home and supported. There were challenges

that sometimes made her give up, but America is the land for greener pastures and coming from where she was, she was one lucky person to be

where she is at now. With her stay in RHS, she became a department Chair for Science, part of ILT and a team lead. She always believed that no

matter how hard life is, if you persevere and believe in yourself, great things will happen.

With all of these, Mrs Ramos is very thankful to each one who was and still part of her journey. Her mom who was a big part of her challenge died

years ago after visiting her for 6 months here in the USA. She is now happy with her husband and children travelling with “Andariega”- the camper.

Mr. Castillo, not yet two years old, immigrated to the United States with his parents and newborn sister. After living in the community of Montebello for 3 years, Mr. Castillo’s parents bought a home is East Los Angeles. He is a proud graduate of Humphreys Elementary School, Griffith Middle School and James A. Garfield High School.

Mr. Castillo’s passion for working with youth was developed while attending San Diego State University where he earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Social Science. In 1998, he started his teaching career at Stevenson Middle School, where he taught for 7 years, before being hired at Roosevelt High School where he has served as a Social Studies teacher and Theodore Roosevelt Senior High School’s Teen Court Coordinator. His involvement with Los Angeles County Teen Court Program and California Association of Youth Courts, has inspired and allowed him to gain valuable insight into Law related instruction, juvenile justice and student discipline.

In 2007, Mr. Castillo earned National Board Certification and in 2009 a Master of Arts degree in Education and School Leadership from UCLA.

Most recently, in addition to teaching in the Law & Public Service Pathway he has collaborated with the Law & Public Service team of teachers toward Linked Learning GOLD Certification and the transitioning of the Law & Public Service Pathway into a Law & Public Service Magnet.

In 2015, Mr. Castillo was named the Educator of the Year by Street Law, Inc. In his spare time you can find Mr. Castillo on his road bike or hiking the trails of local parks in Northeast Los Angeles, where he lives with his son Alejandro and wife Mery.

Ms. Carlos was born in Boyle Heights, California and raised in Zacatecas, Mexico. When she was 12 years old, she came back to Boyle Heights. She attended Hollenbeck Middle School and Roosevelt High School.

Although she didn’t speak English when she started her middle school education and was part of the ESL program, she graduated as the valedictorian of her high school class, class of 1997. She was not the most

intelligent or talented student in her class, but her hard work, dedication, perseverance, resilience, and support from her parents and teachers, made it possible.

After high school, she attended Cal State Los Angeles where she obtained a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Mathematics, and a Single Subject teaching Credential in Mathematics. While she was attending CSULA,

she was a math tutor at Roosevelt High School. During that time, she had the opportunity to be in several math classes where she helped students understand different math topics, and listened to their life stories.

Her experiences as a math tutor made her realize she made the right career choice.

Ms. Carlos’s main goal as an educator is to collaborate with teachers across content areas to empower students as independent learners, critical thinkers, and problem solvers. Collaborating with teachers across

content areas and different grade levels has increased her creativity and out-of-the-box thinking. She strongly believes that everyone can accomplish anything they set their mind to, as long as they have a

growth mind set. She continually participates in trainings and professional developments in order to support students academically, emotionally, and socially.

Ms. Carlos is thrilled to be teaching at her alma mater high school. She has taught for the last 17 years. She is married and has three boys. Since her boys play travel baseball, she spends most of her weekends at her

son’s baseball games. Besides baseball, she loves dancing, watching movies, walking, and spending time

Ms. Claudia Jimenez is a Spanish teacher, proud Rough Rider and is excited to start her first year of teaching at Roosevelt High School. Although this is her first year teaching high school, she taught Spanish at the university level while working on her Masters and teaching credential. Ms. Jimenez received her Bachelors and Masters in Spanish Literature and Linguistics at California State University, Los Angeles. She is also a member of the National Collegiate Hispanic Honor Society, Sigma Delta Pi, the largest collegiate foreign language honor society in the U.S.

As a native Spanish speaker, sharing the love for her language and culture has become her passion. She wants students of Hispanic descent to expand their cultural knowledge and to embrace it. She also wants students to learn the different cultures and traditions of the Spanish speaking world. She believes that when students learn a new language and a different culture aside of their own, it makes them more culturally appreciative. She also wants students to put into practice and incorporate that respect and knowledge into their daily lives. She feels proud when her students tell her how they could communicate with friends and family in Spanish and share what they have learned in class.

She believes that a good education is not only one who shapes the minds but also the hearts and character of students. She will combine the importance of learning with the value of strong character and work ethics so that students become contributors in all areas of their lives.

Ms. Jimenez was born in a pueblito in Zacatecas, Mexico. She came to the U.S. when she was 13 years old. Ms. Jimenez attended Hollenbeck Middle School and then Roosevelt High School. She is first in her family to attend school in the U.S. and graduate from a university. She believes that education is essential for personal growth and it is the best way to advance your economic status.

Ms. Jimenez enjoys the outdoors in her free time. She loves taking her daughter to national parks and beautiful roads. She also loves visiting her hometown and getting in touch with her roots. She hopes to be traveling further in the near future and visiting other countries and cultures.

I have been working as an educator for 15 years, beginning with the Los Angeles County Office of Education (LACOE) as a substitute teacher from 2008-2009.  I began teaching mathematics in LAUSD in 2009 at Manual Arts High School.  Since then I have spent my entire career working in South Central Los Angeles, most recently coming from Augustus F. Hawkins High School.  I am excited to join the faculty of Roosevelt in 2022 and work in the Boyle Heights community.  

My interest in education began while I was receiving my BA in philosophy at William Paterson University in New Jersey from 1997 -  2000.   I chose a  career in public education because I believe that it is important that all students have access to a quality, engaging, and free public education.  I was part of a design team that developed the school plan and founded Augustus Hawkins High School.  One of the questions that guided the development of Hawkins was, “How can a school help to empower not only a body of students, but the community surrounding them?”  For me this speaks to the need for schools to be hubs of information, learning, and resources within a community that leverages the pre-existing knowledge and experiences  of the community being served.  When I joined Roosevelt, I did so feeling a shared sense of values in how Roosevelt relates to the community of Boyle Heights.

My entire family is a part of LAUSD.  My wife is a counselor at Castro Middle School, My twin boys, Nico and Luca attend Elysian Heights Elementary, and my daughter, Alexandra attends middle school at Thomas Starr King.  My kids enjoy a variety of activities that range from hiking, swimming, and sports to reading, writing, and watching various shows and movies.

Outside of education I spend time with my family and friends, I enjoy running and exercise, I love music (particularly punk and hardcore), I like reading historical non-fiction that offers a critique of various forms of oppressions and hierarchies, and I love to cook and eat Italian food.

Ms. Parra was born and raised in San Joaquin, California, a small farming town in the Central Valley. She is the child of Mexican immigrants and is a first generation college graduate. Her parents are from Ixtlán del Río, Nayarit, a place that Ms. Parra holds near and dear to her heart.

After high school, Ms. Parra moved to the Bay Area to go to college at Stanford University. She graduated in 2019 with a Bachelor’s of Arts in History with a focus in Latin America and a minor in Education with a focus in Teaching and Learning.

After graduating in 2019, Ms. Parra moved to Los Angeles to attend University of California, Los Angeles where she obtained her Social Sciences teaching credential and Masters of Arts in Education in 2021. This is Ms. Parra's 3rd year teaching at Roosevelt and is excited for the year to come! 

Mr. Law was born in Monterey Park, California, in the United States after his parents moved from Hong Kong. He went to Hillcrest Elementary School before moving to Temple City in the 5th grade, where he went to Longden, then Oak Avenue Middle School, and finally Temple City High School. After graduating, he went to UCLA as a Biology major.

Mr. Law developed his interest in teaching as he tutored over the summer breaks to pay for his tuition. He tutored SAT math/english, writing, biology, chemistry, physics, pre-calculus, algebra, geometry, etc. for students from 6th to 12th grade and was encouraged by his students to become a full-time educator. In his last year at UCLA, he began teaching classrooms via internships and student teaching while he finished his undergraduate years with a focus on evolutionary biology. After his bachelor’s, Mr. Law got his credential and Master’s in Integrated STEM Education from CSULA while starting his official teaching career. 

Over the past few years, Mr. Law has become an avid enthusiast for epistemology, psychology, and philosophy, and he is constantly reading and consuming podcasts and lectures as a life-long learner. He is interested in how people think and act based on evolutionary biology and psychology, and his biggest goal is to help students use logic to make sense of the world through solid biological/scientific foundations. His current interests outside of work include dancing, health, biology, anime/manga, reading, cooking, video games, korean entertainment, and outdoor exercise. 

Born and raised in Boyle Heights, Ms. Ceja is a proud LAUSD alumna, grateful for the support she received throughout her education that helped her reach her academic goals. She attended First St. Elementary School, Hollenbeck Middle School, and finally graduated from Roosevelt High School in 2011. 

Thanks to her family and teachers, and a tuition scholarship from the Posse foundation, Ms. Ceja attended and graduated from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) with a Bachelor’s in English in 2015.  She continued her educational journey at UCLA where she received her single-subject teaching credential and a Master’s in Education.  

Through her teaching credential program at UCLA, Ms. Ceja received a specialization in Ethnic Studies curriculum and has built an extensive network of Ethnic Studies teachers.  She strives to teach her students the importance of self-awareness, critical thinking, and reflection; working closely with the Restorative Justice teacher and PSW on campus to incorporate these lessons into her curriculum.  She believes in the power of community and care in creating a strong academic culture and environment.

Ms. Rivera is proudly born and raised in South Central Los Angeles. Her parents and grandparents migrated from Mexico and settled in Boyle Heights and East L.A which had a huge influence in her upbringing. She attended 20th Street Elementary School, John Adams Middle School, and Orthopaedic Hospital Medical Magnet High School. 

After high school, Ms. Rivera made the tough decision of moving away from her family to continue her education at the University of California, Santa Cruz. This made her become the first in her family to attend college. There, Ms. Rivera discovered her love for math and education. In Santa Cruz, she worked with Newcomer students from Mexico and Central America in their math classes. Throughout her time at UCSC, Ms. Rivera learned about the social inequities that existed in communities of color. Her goal is to teach math in a way that her students and their families are able to challenge these inequities and stereotypes that exist in their community and other communities of color.  

In June 2019, she earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Mathematics and became the first in her family to graduate college. Ms. Rivera moved back to South Central and continued her education at the University of California, Los Angeles, where she will earn her Master of Education in Teaching for Social Justice in Urban Communities.

Ms. Rivera will begin her third year of teaching at Theodore Roosevelt Senior High School in the Law & Public Service Pathway. In her free time, Ms. Rivera loves listening to music, going to the gym and attending Dodger games. She also enjoys spending time with her family and friends.

Mr. Yobani was proudly born and raised in the Westlake barrio of Downtown Los Angeles, CA, to two Mexican immigrant parents who abandoned their dreams of education at a young age to sustain their families. He attended Evelyn Thurman Gratts Elementary School, John H. Liechty Middle School, Ramón C. Cortines High School, and left Los Angeles for the first time to attend Yale University.

Mr. Yobani developed a close relationship with the first-generation low-income (FGLI) community at Yale, which provided him a community to reflect on his background and deal with the social challenges that such students face. He later gave back to this community as a mentor, advocate, and the founder of The Community Initiative, Yale’s first administrative space to support FGLI students, as part of his Woodbridge Fellowship. Guided by his own experience of having to reconcile his low-income Chicano background with his growing familiarity and engagement with elite white spaces, Mr. Yobani questions the purpose of an education that takes students’ ownership over their own learning in the name of capitalism and cultural assimilation.

Mr. Yobani is excited to begin his third year as a chemistry & physics teacher through the Law & Public Service Pathway at Theodore Roosevelt High School. He strives to understand the best pedagogical practices for the radical potential of science learning. In his free time, Mr. Yobani loves biking through different parts of the city, celebrating the arts (he knows jazz trumpet from high school and Mexican folk dance from college), and sharing food with close friends and family.

Since 2005, Karina Villalvazo-Banuelos has served as a Roosevelt High School teacher. Roosevelt has given her many opportunities to grow as an individual and professional. She learned that teaching can be a very isolating trade, but she also learned that it doesn’t have to be that way. She has forged close relationships with those that she has worked with and is proud to call them her friends. Roosevelt High School has been the fertile ground that has served to allow her to blossom. She serves on different committees: Family Action Team and School Site Council. She fully takes pride in her work to serve Boyle Heights.Her journey began in an education course that would lead her down the path to becoming an English teacher. After she earned her B.A in English from UCLA, she worked as an assistant to a Literacy Coach in Vail High School for approximately a year. She went through the T.E.P program from UCLA, where she earned her M.Ed in 2007. 

Karina Villalvazo –Banuelos grew up in Montebello, but she migrated from Mexico when she was just one year old with her mother. She comes from a working class family, but very hard working. Her parents have always valued education. The expectation for their children was to seek higher levels of education. They would encourage her and her siblings to do their best. She and her siblings attended the local schools within Montebello, respectively: Wilcox Elementary, Eastmont Middle School, and Schurr High School. She attended UCLA, while both of her siblings attended UCI.Karina Villalvazo-Banuelos interests are very eclectic. She enjoys reading books during the summer. She enjoys spending time with her friends, family, and nephews. She loves roller coasters, Korean dramas, comedy shows, nail art, and anything Halloween. She also loves dining and trying new foods-vegan only. 

Marilyn Papiewski is a lawyer.   She attended the evening program at Southwestern Law School as a working adult, and graduated with honors.

She has practiced law in the areas of employment, social security disability, and criminal defense.  She writes a blog and records a podcast about Constitutional Law.  She also served as a legal adviser to a campaign that sought to pass a rent control ordinance in Pasadena.

In her spare time, she enjoys baking and walking Gracie, her Chihuahua.