Staff

Sharon Delugach serves as Jackie’s Chief of Staff. She identifies first and foremost as an organizer, beginning her organizing career at the age of 15, when she dropped out of high school to organize with the United Farm Workers. Since then, Sharon has organized in community groups and unions, led issue and electoral campaigns, and has worked as a chief of staff and policy director for a variety for progressive elected officials at LAUSD and in the City of Los Angeles.

According to Sharon, the best job she ever had was being Jackie’s chief of staff when Jackie was on the Los Angeles City Council from 1993 to 2000. As a team, Jackie and Sharon’s most notable achievements were passing the country’s first Living Wage ordinance, establishing an office to investigate discrimination of women and people of color within the police and fire departments, and creating proactive and progressive housing policies.

Most recently, Sharon worked for the American Federation of Teachers as the Western Region Community Engagement Coordinator. In that role, she established and directed the Reclaim Our Schools L.A. Coalition, which led a years-long campaign that resulted in establishing and funding community schooling at 30 LAUSD public schools.

When Sharon is not doggedly pursuing Jackie’s policy goals, she’s spending time at her tiny cabin in Big Bear Lake. She loves reading, cooking, hiking, native gardening, dogs and bees.

Fidencio Joel Gallardo is Jackie’s Educational Innovation Deputy. He represents Jackie in the Atwater, Eagle Rock, East Hollywood, Glassell Park, Koreatown, Los Feliz, Mt. Washington, and Pico Union neighborhoods of Los Angeles. Fidencio is passionate about two things: education and community.

Fidencio grew up in southeast L.A. County and attended LAUSD schools: Middleton Elementary, State Street Elementary, South Gate Middle, and Bell High. Upon graduating from the University of Southern California in 1989, Fidencio started his teaching career at South Gate Middle School and has taught in the city of South Gate for thirty years. He has taken a leave of absence from his teaching career to be a part of Jackie’s team.

He has a master’s degree in Educational Administration, but his heart is in the classroom. Whether it’s teaching middle school, high school, adult school or college students, he enjoys creating a sense of community in his classroom, developing student skills, and helping students find what they are passionate about.

His experience and knowledge earned him a position on the California State University, Los Angeles Charter College of Education staff, where he has trained new teachers as an Adjunct Professor in the Curriculum and Instruction department since 1999.

Fidencio currently resides in the City of Bell, where he has served on the City Council since 2015. His hobbies include working out, hiking, playing softball, and ghost hunting.

Steven Simon is Jackie’s Policy Deputy, focusing on district greening and climate change adaptation, charter school accountability, facilities, procurement, and other issues.

Steven was born and raised in Fresno, California, lived for several years in Chicago, and moved to Los Angeles in 2006. Before working for Jackie, he worked in organized labor, at SEIU Local 721 and SEIU United Service Workers West. Most recently, Steven worked at the Worker Education and Resource Center (WERC), a partnership between SEIU Local 721 and the County of Los Angeles. There, he helped design and implement programs that connected workers who have barriers to employment with union-represented jobs, primarily in the public sector.

When he isn’t working, Steven is usually reading, listening to music, going to the pottery studio, spending time with friends, or cleaning up after his cats. 

Danny Palma is Jackie’s Director of Operations. He provides administrative support to the Board District 5 staff and maintains Jackie’s calendar by arranging appointments, meetings, and personal appearances.

Danny grew up in East Los Angeles. He attended Brooklyn Ave. School, Griffith Middle School, and Garfield High School. He has worked at LAUSD for 36 years, spending 14 years in Board District 5 schools, before moving to the Early Childhood Education Division, Local Districts F and 4, the Instructional Technology Initiative, and Human Resources. Most recently, he worked as the Administrative Assistant to Board Offices. He serves as a mentor to support staff across the District, and his experience and knowledge of District policies and procedures are indispensable to the success of our Board office’s work.

Danny is an avid Rams and Dodgers fan, and he enjoys going to concerts and traveling.

Claudia Valladares is a Community Engagement Deputy in Jackie’s office. Claudia started her journey with LAUSD as an English-language learner at South Gate Middle School.  Her professional career with the school district started as a volunteer at Victoria Avenue Elementary, where she helped preschoolers in Mrs. Kathy Lalonde’s class with language development and school readiness. Her outstanding service there was rewarded when she was hired as a teacher assistant.

Claudia has had a diverse career and volunteer trajectory at LAUSD, bringing valuable perspective and insights to her work in the District 5 office: she has also been case manager and resource navigator for LAUSD’s Healthy Start Program, and has been a volunteer with Padres Unidos de South Gate.

Claudia has a master’s degree in Mental Health and Wellness from Grand Canyon University and a bachelor’s degree in Interdisciplinary Studies from Cal State Dominguez Hills. She is the proud parent of twins. Claudia enjoys watching movies, going on walks with pets, and reading non-fiction.

Mayra Caballero is Jackie’s Field Representative, representing the office as a liaison at schools in central and South L.A. and the southeast L.A. County cities. Mayra was born and raised in SELA, as locals refer to southeast L.A. County and is a proud alumna of LAUSD schools, including Walnut Park Elementary School, Gage Middle School, and South Gate High School. Mayra has a bachelor’s degree in Sociology from Cal State Fullerton, where she developed her passion for education and a desire to return to her hometown and give back to the community.

Mayra is honored to work for Jackie and be able to advocate for the community that made her into who she is today. Mayra is committed to furthering her professional development in the education space and has plans to return to school to get a graduate degree that will enable her to continue serving the students of tomorrow.

Mayra is a fitness enthusiast. She also enjoys roller skating, hiking, and spending time with her friends, family, and dog.