Jenny Oropeza
Jenny Oropeza | |
|---|---|
28th district | |
| In office December 4, 2006 – October 20, 2010 | |
| Preceded by | Debra Bowen |
| Succeeded by | Ted Lieu |
| Member of the California State Assembly from the 55th district | |
| In office December 4, 2000 – November 30, 2006 | |
| Preceded by | Richard Floyd |
| Succeeded by | Laura Richardson |
| Member of the Long Beach City Council from the 1st district | |
| In office July 15, 1994 – December 4, 2000 | |
| Preceded by | Evan Anderson Braude |
| Succeeded by | Bonnie Lowenthal |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Jennifer Ann Oropeza September 27, 1957 Forest Lawn Memorial Park Cemetery, Cypress, California, U.S. |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouse |
Thomas Mullins (m. 1977) |
| Relatives | Lynne Oropeza (sister) |
| Alma mater | California State University, Long Beach (B.A. Business Administration) |
| Occupation | Legislator |
| Known for | Environmentalism, Public Health, Education policy, Alameda Corridor |
| Committees | Senate Chair Revenue and Taxation Integrity of Elections Public Health and the Environment CA Latino Caucus on Environmental Justice Policy Assembly Chair Budget Transportation |
Jennifer Ann Oropeza (September 27, 1957 – October 20, 2010) was the
Oropeza was elected to her first term in the
She served in the California State Assembly for the six years (2000–2006) prior to her time in the Senate.
Education
Oropeza graduated from
Early political career
Oropeza was the first Latina to serve as a member of the Long Beach Unified School District Board of Education and held office from 1988 to 1994. In 1994, she was elected the first
Assembly Member
Oropeza was a member of the California State Assembly from 2000 to 2006 for the 55th Assembly District. In January 2002, with barely a year's experience in the Assembly, Oropeza was named chair of the Assembly Budget Committee — on the eve of the worst deficit in California history. She served two years. From 2004 to 2006, Oropeza chaired the Assembly Transportation Committee.
She was Vice Chair of the dual-house Latino Caucus. In 2005, the League of California Cities' Latino Caucus named her Legislator of the Year[citation needed]; in 2006, the Los Angeles League of Conservation Voters awarded her the Smith-Weiss Environmental Champion Award for her work on issues from air pollution and cancer prevention to radiation and environmental advocacy. She long supported transportation improvements, including Proposition 42 in 2002, which sought to dedicate a portion of gasoline taxes toward construction.
California State Senate
Run for the State Senate
On June 6, 2006, Oropeza won a very close Democratic primary against former Assembly member
Committees and caucuses
Oropeza chaired the Senate Revenue and Taxation Committee and was a member of the Appropriations; Transportation; and Elections, Reapportionment and Constitutional Amendments Committees. She also chaired the
Legislation
Upon election to the State Senate, Oropeza introduced 24 bills. The policy areas ranged from preventing
.Death
In 2004 Oropeza was treated for liver cancer. She was admitted to Long Beach Memorial Medical Center for difficulty breathing, but later died there the evening of October 20, 2010. She had been undergoing treatment for a blood clot in her abdomen since May 2010. Oropeza was survived by her husband Tom Mullins, mother Sharon, sister Lynne, and brother John.[2]
Legacy
Since her death, Oropeza has been honored by the Democratic Women's Study Club in Long Beach (the oldest continually meeting chartered Democratic club west of the Mississippi), which posthumously awarded her the Political Leadership Award, which is now named the Jenny Oropeza Political Leadership Award. Centro CHA in Long Beach posthumously awarded Oropeza the Create Change Community Service Excellence Award, now known as the Create Change: Jenny Oropeza Community Service Excellence Award. The Long Beach Lambda Democratic Club created the Jenny Oropeza Ally of the Year Award, which like the other two awards, was first given in 2011.
As a tribute to Oropeza's dedication to fostering protections for key California-state public health programs, the Los Angeles County Affiliate of Susan G. Komen for the Cure, in joint collaboration with the six other California-based Komen Affiliates ("the California Collaborative"), established the Senator Jenny Oropeza Public Policy Internship position.
The Senator Jenny Oropeza Memorial Scholarship was established after her death, and is awarded annually at California State University, Long Beach to a student who is committed to a career in public service.
On March 31, 2011 (birthday of Cesar E. Chavez), the City of Long Beach renamed the community center in Cesar E. Chavez Park the Jenny Oropeza Community Center. During her time on the Long Beach City Council, Jenny fought hard to develop and name the park in honor of labor leader and civil rights activist Cesar Chavez.
On December 8, 2011 the Los Angeles Unified School District dedicated the Jenny Oropeza Global Studies Academy. The Academy is one of four academies at the Rancho Dominguez Preparatory School.
In August 2012, in recognition of Oropeza's work to find the necessary funds to finance completion of a critical section of the Alameda Corridor project that had run out of money, the California Legislature approved the naming of the Honorable Jenny Oropeza Memorial Overcrossing for the section of Pacific Coast Highway in Wilmington that created the bridge that spans the Alameda Corridor. Oropeza successfully worked with Federal, State and local government entities, as well as the railroads and Metropolitan Transportation Authority to find the funds to construct this last and critical portion of the project.
On April 21, 2014,
In 2016, the Long Beach Unified School District Board of Education unanimously approved name changes for three schools, including International Elementary to be renamed Jenny Oropeza Elementary School, in honor of the former Long Beach Unified School District board member, Long Beach city councilmember, state assemblymember and state senator. The dedication ceremony took place on November 28, 2016. Oropeza, who died in 2010 at age 53, was the first Latina to serve on the Long Beach USD school board and the city council.
References
- ^ Profile, smartvoter.org, June 26, 2007.
- ^ "Senator Oropeza Memorial Ceremony, CA State Senate Floor Session, January 20, 2011". senate.ca.gov. State of California.
External links
- Jenny Oropeza at Find a Grave
- Join California Jenny Oropeza
- {{Ballotpedia}} template missing ID and not present in Wikidata.