Pomona Hope
Staff

Staff

In addition to a growing community of volunteers and financial supporters, Pomona Hope is led by a Governing Board of Directors and Executive Director. Our staff members give of their time, energy, and expertise to completing important organizational responsibilities.

STAFF

Jeff Johannsen

Executive Director

Jeff Johannsen joined the Pomona Hope staff as Youth Coordinator in 2012. Before joining the team at Pomona Hope, he spent six years on staff at KidWorks, an After-School Program located in central Santa Ana. In addition, he served on the Pomona Hope board from 2010 to 2012. He lives with his wife and two children in the city of Pomona. Jeff holds a B.A. in Management Engineering from Claremont McKenna College, and a B.S. in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science from UC Irvine.

 

 

 

Jessica Garcia

Program Director

Jess Garcia has been a part of After-School with Pomona Hope for 16 years now. She started our program as a Kindergartener and has been dedicated to our program ever since. As a high school student, Jess Garcia received numerous Scholarships and awards for her outstanding leadership abilities, including the Jonah’s Light Superheroism Award in 2019. When she was a Senior in High School she was our first ASB President, during this time she organized community events to bring our Pomona Hope families together including our first-ever community Thanksgiving Dinner. She has lived in Pomona her entire life and plans to stay in the area, with the hope that she can serve the community and help create a change that can make it easier for students to receive the academic support they need. Jess Garcia has prior experience working closely with our students as well as other students in the community, she was previously an after-school tutor working for PUSD. She believes that the only way to do great work is to love what you do. Jess is sure that her love for our community and passion will help Pomona Hope continue to bloom.

 

 

 

Miriam De La Torre

Outreach Director

Miriam first came to Pomona Hope in 2014, where she served as a volunteer until eventually interning as Summer Programs Coordinator in 2017. While originally from Los Angeles, she moved to Pomona for college and has been a part of the Pomona Hope family ever since. Miriam graduated with a B.S. in Business Administration and a minor in Economics from Cal Poly Pomona. Afterwards, she went on to work in the insurance industry, then in the legal field, before feeling a call to return and serve the community.

Hector Rojas

Program Coordinator

Hector has been a part of Pomona Hope for 9 years, first as a student, then as a volunteer, and now as a Program Coordinator. He is currently attending his last year at California State Polytechnic University, Pomona pursuing a Liberal Studies degree to become a school counselor. He recently completed a Teaching Internship at Pomona Hope during the Summer Enrichment program.  He strives to help the youth of tomorrow to better understand and value the importance of education.    

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Madeleine Edwards

Fund Development Coordinator

Madeleine first joined the Pomona Hope community in 2016 when she participated in the Summer Internship Program. Madeleine has served as a weekly volunteer with After School with Pomona Hope and on staff as the former Outreach Director. She graduated in 2018 from Scripps College with a B.A. in Latin American & Caribbean Studies and Sociology. After leaving the staff in 2019 to teach English in Argentina, she returned as the Fund Development Coordinator. Madeleine works remotely from Austin, Texas where she lives with her husband Aldo, and their cat, Mazapan. Madeleine works full-time at the Thinkery, a children’s STEAM (science, technology, engineering, art, math) museum that focuses on opening doors to STEAM learning experiences and joyful learning through play for all children in central Texas. She still thinks of Pomona as a second home and looks forward to many visits in the future to see the kids, volunteers, and her co-workers. 

 

 

Shantee McKellar

Bookkeeper

 A native Pomonian, Shantee is passionate about Pomona and its youth.  She has been a volunteer for Pomona Hope and was the office manager of First Presbyterian Church for over ten years.  Shantee works alongside her husband, John, for Just Us 4 Youth; a mentoring program for at-risk youth on school sites throughout Pomona and in Apple Valley.  Shantee and John have three daughters, Cambria, Grace, and Hadassah (plus many more “daughters” and “sons” with the youth ministry in which they served, where she is known as “Big Momma”). Shantee loves to scrapbook and papercraft.   She became our bookkeeper in February of 2016 and continues to be a vital part of our work.  Shantee’s gifts of hospitality and laughter are known by all who come in contact with her.