She Dedicated Six Years to SMMUSD in Her Current Role
Dr. Jacqueline Mora, the Assistant Superintendent of Educational Services at Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District, has passed away following a five-month battle of illness at 46 years old.
Dr. Mora arrived in central California as a child from Mexico going on to earn a Bachelor of Arts in Chicano Studies and Spanish from the University of California, Santa Barbara, a master’s degree in education with a focus on teaching and learning from UCSB, a master’s degree in education with a concentration in administrative and policy studies from UCLA, and a doctorate in K-12 leadership in urban education from USC.
She dedicated six years to SMMUSD in her current role, where she oversaw educational programming, curriculum development, instructional strategies. Her responsibilities encompassed the hiring and evaluation of principals and staff, professional development initiatives, budgeting and spearheaded efforts during Covid-19 to transition to distance learning.
Before SMMUSD, Dr. Mora held various roles, including director of English learner and parent engagement programs at Santa Barbara USD, elementary school principal positions in Santa Barbara, San Francisco Unified, and Glendale Unified, as well as prior service as assistant principal, categorical program advisor, and teacher in LAUSD.
“Our SMMUSD family has lost a tireless advocate and champion for equity and inclusion, particularly for ALL our students, including our most diverse and vulnerable. Whenever our District has pursued positive academic changes to benefit ALL our students, Dr. Mora was either the instigator or a staunch supporter.” said Board of Education President Maria Leon-Vazquez in a statement. “Her contributions include initiatives and programs such as our focus on diversity, equity, and inclusion, the expansion and enhancement of our District English Learner Advisory Committee (DELAC), our EL program, career technical education programs, social justice standards integrated into our curriculum, family engagement, anti-racism resources, and our American cultures and ethnic studies classes.”
Dr. Mora is survived by her mother, Maria Mora, her brother, David Mora, sister, Vanessa Mora, a niece, all residing in central California, and her fiancé, Eduardo Magaña.
Those who wish to send a note or card to the family, are asked to send it to: Maria Mora 144 W. Lerdo Hwy. Shafter, CA 93262.
