A Night in Havana Fundraiser a Success

A respected volunteer and nonprofit executive with decades of experience, Rose Padilla Johnson serves as CEO of Davis Street Community Center in San Leandro, California. As part of her duties, Rose Padilla Johnson engages the community-at-large and other key stakeholders with regular fundraisers to help the center continue its mission of serving San Leandro. 

The center held an engaging fundraising event in March 2019 based around the theme of A Night in Havana. The sell-out event highlighted Cuban cuisine and culture, raising more than $160,000 to help the community center continue its vital mission of reaching the thousands of underserved individuals in San Leandro. 

The event also marked a changing of the guard among the David Street Community Center’s board of directors. Gordon Galvin stepped down as board president after serving in the role for a decade. Dr. Susan Cota was introduced as his replacement. In her comments, CEO Rose Padilla Johnson expressed gratitude for all the community partners whose contributions continue to give the center the vital resources it needs to continue reaching those who depend upon them the most.

Davis Street Community Center Joins Stamp Out Hunger Food Drive

As the CEO of the Davis Street Community Center (DSCC) in San Leandro, California, Rose Padilla Johnson has managed a diverse array of community programs for more than 25 years. Committed to serving low-income families, Rose Padilla Johnson oversees programs including health clinic and child care services, as well as community services initiatives such as food drives. 

On May 11, 2019, DSCC participated in the country’s largest one-day food collection drive, Stamp Out Hunger, which gathers community service organizations and local post offices to donate food to people in need. Marking DSCC’s most successful food drive ever, the community center collected more than 25,000 pounds of food.

The 27th annual Stamp Out Hunger drive drew more than 30 volunteers to the San Leandro Post Office on Abram Court. Davis Street staff worked alongside municipal leaders, Key Club members, and high school students to sort thousands of pounds of non-perishable food items to be donated to local food banks. In addition to participating in food drives, DSCC supports low-income families in the area through food, clothing, healthcare, and childcare programs.

Addressing California’s Teacher Shortage

Since 1991, community leader Rose Padilla Johnson has led the safety net services provider Davis Street Community Center based in San Leandro. Over her entire public career, Rose Padilla Johnson has spearheaded initiatives that improve the quality of life for San Leandro’s most vulnerable residents. She is an ardent supporter of programs that effectively respond to the state’s teacher shortage.

During the 2017-2018 school year, California needed 24,000 more qualified teachers to fill positions at 10,000 schools across the state according to a study conducted by the Learning Policy Institute. That year, only 16,000 new licenses were awarded, while the remaining positions were filled by staff without sufficient teacher training.

While the number of students in California teacher preparation programs has increased over the past seven years, widespread concerns about the high cost of teacher training programs and perceived job instability have made it difficult for the state to attract new educators. To combat this, California’s Governor has increased funding for undergraduate teacher preparation programs and initiatives to encourage non-instructional school staff to obtain teaching credentials. Other education professionals suggest that the shortage may be reversed by reinstating loan forgiveness and tuition-free teaching programs.

Three Reasons to Consider Short-term Therapy

As the CEO of Davis Street Community Center for 27 years, Rose Padilla Johnson has transformed the center into a one-stop wrap-around services provider delivering medical, educational, and community support to residents of San Leandro and Alameda County. Under Rose Padilla Johnson’s leadership, Davis Street expanded its affordable mental health services and provided San Leandro clients with long and short-term therapy options.

Short-term therapy is a goal-focused form of cognitive behavioral talk therapy with a set time limit. Therapists meet with clients over a few weeks to a few months to work on issues related to emotional and mental health. Some benefits of short-term therapy include:

1. Specificity - Rather than investigating the root of a behavioral pattern, short-term therapy focuses on identifying current problems and implementing pragmatic solutions. This type of counseling is ideal for tackling a specific situation, such as a recent break-up or a new stressful job.

2. Intensity - Most therapists include a ‘take-home’ component for their short-term clients, who are expected to consider what they have discussed during the therapy session and record their thoughts and feelings. This intensive reflection portion helps clients make the most out of their brief counseling sessions.

3. Low Commitment - Short-term therapy can be appealing to people who are not able to commit to years of counseling. Short-term sessions are more affordable and can provide clients with practical information that they can apply immediately to improve their lives.

Davis Street Community Center Hosts A Night in Havana

Rose Padilla Johnson has spent nearly three decades managing operations as CEO of Davis Street Community Center in San Leandro. In this position, Rose Padilla Johnson oversees a depth of charitable programs and special fundraising events that benefit low-income communities throughout the greater San Leandro area.

The Davis Street Community Center recently hosted a Cuban-themed fundraising dinner at the Sequoyah Country Club. The A Night in Havana fundraising event featured a special ceremony for Gordon Galvan, an influential leader and board member with Davis Street for ten years, and a welcome reception for the new board president, Dr. Susan Cota. In addition to individual supporters, A Night in Havana drew sponsorship from several local businesses and organizations, including the Sutter Health Eden Medical Center, Big O Tires, Corbett Paralegal Services, and Blaisdell’s Business Products, to name only a few.

Following the event, Davis Street announced that A Night in Havana had raised $156,170. The funds will allow Davis Street to provide services to thousands of low-income families and seniors each year.

Davis Street Primary Care Clinic Medical and Dental Services

Rose Padilla Johnson has spent nearly 28 years with San Leandro, California’s Davis Street Community Center, including in her present role as chief executive officer. Under the guidance of Rose Padilla Johnson, Davis Street Community Center provides a depth of clinical services to individuals in need.

Over the course of the center's 2017-2018 fiscal year, nearly 12,400 patients visited the Davis Street Primary Care Clinic. Over 7,600 of these patients required medical services, which the clinic renders regardless of the patient’s immigration status or ability to play. Examples of medical care services offered at the clinic, which include both preventive health services and ambulatory primary care support, range from health education and nutritional counseling to management of diabetes, hypertension, and other chronic illnesses.

Dental services at the clinic, meanwhile, were utilized by about 3,300 patients last year. The clinic’s extensive dental capabilities include full dental exams and x-rays. Surgical extractions and soft tissue curettage are just two examples of the many surgical procedures offered by the clinic’s dental staff.

The Davis Street Primary Care Clinic also maintains a diverse range of behavioral health services and provides help with medical insurance coverage. To learn more about these and related clinical topics, please visit www.davisstreet.org.

Alameda County Will Spend $340 Million to Tackle Homelessness

Rose Padilla Johnson is an experienced administrator of community services programs who serves as CEO of the Davis Street Community Center (DSCC) in San Leandro, California. Under Rose Padilla Johnson’s direction, DSCC provides essential services to underserved residents of San Leandro and Central Alameda County, including healthcare, childcare, and assistance finding affordable housing.

Alameda County is one of the most expensive places to live in the country, leaving many low-income families struggling to find an affordable place to live. Late last year, Alameda County officials announced they are allocating $340 million over the next three years to address the area’s growing homelessness crisis. 

The funds will support a variety of programs to get people off the streets and into housing. In addition to a substance abuse drop-in clinic at Santa Rita Jail, which will offer immediate help to people released from custody, the money will fund a 16-bed center in Oakland that will care for people in psychiatric crisis for up to 10 days. The rest of the funding will be directed to programs to help at least 3,000 people obtain housing or stay in the housing they currently have, rather than face eviction.