Darlene Meza

Impact Area

Darlene joined Valley Vision in March 2023 as a Project Associate supporting the Community Economic Relief Fund (CERF).

Professional Experience

Darlene has experienced a blended life of growing up in Socal, Mexico, and the Central Valley. Prior to joining Valley Vision, Darlene worked in the retail industry and in the education field amounting to full-time employment while attending their undergrad program full time heavily focusing on Human Behavior Research. Darlene was a Lab Research Assistant focusing on applied behavior analysis for marginalized communities with the project topic of children learning consent. Darlene’s personal research focused on cultural competency and morality in society.

Darlene was also a member of the Community Involvement program at Pacific which focused on serving the Stockton community by promoting access to higher education, self-efficacy, and tutoring services. In addition to their academic career, Darlene served as an Americorp member with the University of the Pacific as a Pacific Action El Concilio CA Special Events Intern. After Darlene’s Americorp service ended they were invited to join El Concilio CA as a Bilingual Community Outreach Specialist and shortly after was promoted to Grant Operations Coordinator & Report Analyst.

Education

Bachelor of Science in Psychology – University of the Pacific
Minor in Ethnic Studies

Interests

Arts & Crafts (sculpting, scrapbooking, sewing, vintage photography), collecting vinyls, collecting crystals, cooking and baking from scratch, traveling and learning (especially about human behavior and other cultures!)