Board President

Ricardo Padilla was re-elected in November 2022 and currently serves as President of the El Monte Union High School District Board of Trustees.  

Elected 2013 - 2017, re-elected 2017 - 2022, re-elected 2022 - 2026.

BIO

Ricardo Padilla is a longtime resident of the city of El Monte. He attended Rio Vista Elementary and Charles E. Gidley Middle School in the El Monte City School District. Ricardo went on to graduate from Rosemead High School and then attended college to earn several degrees and certifications in education.  Ricardo has worked in education for the past 23 years in the El Monte City School District. He has experience as an Instructional Assistant, ESL Teacher, AVID Coordinator and his current assignment for the past 16 years as an Outreach Consultant with the Child Welfare and Attendance Department. Ricardo has also been the proud recipient of the prestigious Golden Oak Service Award from the PTA and the Association of California School Administrators' (ACSA) Golden Apple Award.  In his spare time, Ricardo serves as President of the El Monte-South El Monte Emergency Resources Association, a non-profit organization that focuses on helping struggling individuals and families.

Board Vice President

Qui Nguyen was elected in November 2022 and currently serves as Vice President of the El Monte Union High School District Board of Trustees.

Board Clerk

Esthela Torres de Siegrist was elected in November 2020 and currently serves as Clerk of the El Monte Union High School District Board of Trustees.  

Elected 2007-2011, Re-elected 2013-2017, Re-elected 2020 - 2024

BIO

Born, raised, and educated in Mexico, I early on developed a passion for learning; Spanish as my first language; French as my second language, and English as my third language.

After graduating as valedictorian from my high school, I enrolled in UNAM (la Universidad Nacional de México), earning my Bachelor’s Degree in Spanish Linguistics and Literature, graduating as Valedictorian in la Facultad de Filosofía y Letras.

My first academic position was as a linguistics researcher in el Centro de Linguística Hispánica at UNAM. I was Team Leader in an extensive published research study of the Spanish Language in the 21 Spanish-speaking countries. Soon after, I was awarded a fellowship for a Master’s in Arts Degree in Hispanic Linguistics at the Universidad Complutense in Madrid, Spain. This required me to secure a diplomatic passport.

Upon returning from Spain, I was a team member of elite UNAM Spanish professors sent to San Antonio, Texas to open UNAM’s first extension outside Mexico.  Soon after, I won a Professorial Chair in Spanish Linguistics in UNAM’s Facultad de Filosofía y Letras.  In Mexico, I taught Spanish and Linguistics at the Universidad de Guanajuato, UNAM, la Iberoamericana, and la Universidad de las Américas.

In the United States, have taught all levels of Spanish at PCC for 28 consecutive years. I also have taught all levels of Spanish at USC, Cal-Poly Pomona, Azusa Pacific University, Citrus College, and I-Poly High School, Pomona.  At Cal-Poly Pomona’s National Multilingual Multicultural Materials Development Center, I co-authored the Manual for Billingual Educators.

I immigrated to the United States in 1974 with a “blue card” after marrying David Siegrist, an El Monte trilingual Teacher/Professor, Vietnam War Veteran, and former employee of the CIA and NSA.

Together, David and I studied together at Pepperdine University and graduated with our Master’s Degrees in K-12 Education.

I am a mother of three children (two attorneys and one college professor) alumni of Durfee School, El Monte Union High School District’s “Mommy and Me” Program, Arroyo High School, Rio Hondo College, Pasadena City College, Rutger’s University, Southwestern Law School, and the USC School of Law.

As a community member, I have served as President of El Monte City School District’s Bilingual Advisory Committee, President and Dean of the El Monte Women’s Club, Legislation Representative of Arroyo High School’s PTSA, President of the El Monte Friend O’Garden Club; Chairwoman El Monte ALA Girls’ State; Chairwoman District 18 ALA Girls’ State; President and Secretary of Pasadena City College’s PTSA, San Gabriel Valley District Women’s Clubs’ Chairwoman Education and Libraries, and President and Recording Secretary of the El Monte/South El Monte Business and Professional Women’s Club.

I have been elected three times to the El Monte Union High School District Board of Trustees, serving once as Board President, and presently Serve as EMUHSD’s Representative on the Los Angeles County School Trustees Association.

Board Member

Florencio F. Briones was re-elected in November 2022 and currently serves as a member of the El Monte Union High School District Board of Trustees.  

Elected 2017 - 2022, re-elected 2022 - 2026.

BIO

Trustee Florencio Briones is a lifelong resident of El Monte. He was elected to the El Monte Union High School District Board of Trustees in 2017 and reelected in 2022. He is the first openly gay man to serve on the board. 

Prior to being elected to the board, Trustee Briones worked as a classified school employee in the Information Technology field and was a member of the California School Employees Association, Chapter 11. Following that role, Trustee Briones expanded his public service experience, working as a Senior Deputy Supervisor and LGBTQ Liaison for the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors. Trustee Briones worked on LGBTQ issues, housing and homelessness, and environmental justice policy in the San Gabriel Valley. As a Deputy Supervisor, Trustee Briones also served as a director for the San Gabriel Valley Council of Governments, where he served on the Homelessness Committee and the Council of Government’s governing board.

During his tenure on the board, Trustee Briones has served as Board President in 2020 and 2021, where he led the board through the COVID-19 pandemic. Trustee Briones is also a twice-elected delegate to the California School Boards Association Delegate Assembly, representing school districts in Region 23-B, and he is the district’s appointed representative to the Los Angeles County School Trustees Association. Trustee Briones has made state and federal advocacy a priority, working to secure additional resources and funding for our schools.

Trustee Briones is also a dedicated volunteer in the community. As a member of the El Monte Women’s Club, he takes on the important role of chairing the student scholarship committee. Trustee Briones is also a director of the El Monte Historical Society, preserving the rich history of our community, and a volunteer with the El Monte/South El Monte Meals on Wheels organization, serving those in need.

Trustee Briones' educational journey is a testament to his commitment to learning and personal growth. A proud product of El Monte schools, he graduated from Mountain View High School in 2000. He furthered his education at Pasadena City College, earning a certificate in Computer Information Systems and associate degrees in History, Humanities, and Social and Behavioral Science. Trustee Briones is a proud graduate of California State Polytechnic University, Pomona, where he earned a Bachelor of Arts in History and graduated cum laude.

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Board Member

Carlos Salcedo was re-elected in November 2020 and currently serves as member of the El Monte Union High School District Board of Trustees.

Elected November 2001-2013, Re-elected November 2015 - 2020, Re-elected 2020 - 2024

BIO

Mr. Carlos G. Salcedo and his wife Martha, are parents of two children who attend school in the El Monte City School District.  Mr. Salcedo has made education his life’s work.  His focus is on increasing student achievement in the El Monte Union High School District.

Mr. Salcedo has been involved in public education for over 25 years. He began helping El Monte’s youth as a paraprofessional for the Mountain View School District and then became a teacher after he received his college degree. After being a classroom teacher for 15 years, Mr. Salcedo moved on to become an assistant principal at Durfee School in the El Monte City School District.  After 4.5 years at Durfee School he accepted a position as principal at Cleminson School.

In each of these positions, he focused on academic excellence and implemented educational programs tailored to the needs of the students and community. A hallmark of Mr. Salcedo’s career has been his community involvement.  Mr. Salcedo is actively involved as a board member for the El Monte National Little League, El Monte Promise Foundation and the Bobby Salcedo Memorial Foundation.

Throughout his career, Mr. Salcedo has advocated for all students and their academic achievement, ensuring that all students continue to progress.  To this end, he has worked to establish effective partnerships with elected officials, business and community-based organizations in order to improve educational programs at all school sites.