Kenia Davalos

A former Philanthropist of the Year, Kenia Davalos believes in the value of assisting those in underserved communities rise above their circumstances. Growing up in a such a community herself, Davalos greatly benefitted from the public education she received. She now strives to return the favor by aiding in the empowerment of women through her class, Empowering Women Who Want Financial Health and Wealth, which she leads at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) Extension. Kenia Davalos also aids women from troubled backgrounds in gaining access to higher education and scholarships.

Kenia Davalos also hopes to affect changes in the local school district. She is running for the Whittier City School District Board with the mission of affording public school students with the same opportunities she received. Davalos wishes to improve the science, technology, and math programs and implement higher academic standards. She also understands the importance of a strong special education program, as she works with individuals with disabilities as the Chief Financial Officer of a small Whittier business. With the understanding that budget cuts affect school operations, Kenia Davalos vows to work closely with the school district, teachers, parents, and political leaders to work around cuts and find innovative methods of funding. She plans to involve the entire Whittier community in these efforts.

Kenia Davalos studied history at UCLA and continued on to study business at the graduate level at the Maxwell School of Syracuse University. Davalos returned to school through the University of Southern California Marshall School Executive Education program, where she studied e-commerce. She also became a Corporate Governance Fellow with the Harvard Business School. As of 2011, Kenia Davalos became Founding Fellow with the Executive Leadership Academy through the Center for Studies in Higher Education at University of California, Berkeley. She lives in Whittier with her two children.