Election of Officers

Ellen Torres started her PTA journey when her oldest son entered kindergarten. She has served in many PTA positions during her 30+ years of volunteering including president at the Elementary, Middle School, High School, Council and District levels. She has also served on the California State PTA Board of Managers as VP for Convention, Membership Service Commission, Student Involvement Committee and chaired the Scholarship and Grants Committee. She is an active community volunteer in South Pasadena and is a passionate advocate for all children. Ellen has been married to Edward for 45 years and is the mother to four adult children.

Barbara Smith took on leadership roles in the PTA, twenty years ago when her son, Nicholas entered kindergarten, she has a wonderful sense of humor and enjoys working closely with other people. She takes tasks to a new level – be it personalized biographical journals for an entire 2nd grade, to working with units in her District to get them all active on Totem. There are no impossible tasks, just opportunities to learn new skills in order to accomplish goals in her personal opinion.

Will Sanford, has been an active unit, council, district and State PTA leader for over 25 years. He has served as a commissioner on the California State PTA Convention Commission for 18 years. He is focused on helping PTA’s to be fully inclusive of all community members to ensure that all children have an opportunity to learn and grow.

Marilyn Cachola Lucey is a longtime PTA supporter, having served as president at the unit, council, and district PTA levels. Her work at the state level centered on DEI, legislative advocacy, and education, and her current role at National PTA is to identify and recruit leaders. She currently works as legislative staff, and worked professionally in public education and nonprofit sectors prior. She is proud of her affiliation with ACLU, First 5, and Moms Demand Action. She has a graduate degree from the school of counseling psychology and education. She lives in the SFBay Area with her neurodiverse family.

I have been a part of PTA since 1993. I have served in almost every position within PTA, including membership chair, financial secretary, treasurer, auditor, parliamentarian, legislation chair, convention chair and first VP. I was also the president at an elementary, middle and high school, Council and District. I have had the privilege of serving on CAPTA BOM for the last ten years. Because of PTA and what I learned I was fortunate enough to be able to serve as a Trustee on my local school board.

I have served at different levels and roles of the PTA and have leaned on my experience as a manager to help. Delegation, trust, and active listening are important when working with many individuals. As a Convention Chair, I came in under budget and even saved the District money. It was time-consuming and stressful, and I knew it was important because I remember that feeling of invigoration after my first convention. I also currently serve on a local PFLAG board in Contra Costa. PFLAG aligns with PTA values because we want the best for ALL students and families.

Derick Boerner has 10+ years of experience in PTA. He has served as a unit leader in most positions, starting his PTA journey as Treasurer of his daughter’s elementary school. After serving as President, Derick moved on to Secretary of San Diego Unified Council of PTAs, learning he was surrounded with people that shared his passion for PTA and leadership. After serving as the Legislation Director, he quickly embraced a love for the legislative aspect of PTA. While serving as Council President, Derick continued to embrace his passion for Legislation, serving as Vice President of Legislation with Ninth District PTA. As an accountant, Derick offered his Financial Leadership to PTA by serving as Treasurer for the District. Derick’s true joy is his family. He is married to Alexis, a Special Education teacher, and is the proud father to Sydney and Audrey. Derick believes that all children deserve a quality public education and shares a passion for the advocacy within Special Education and diversity. Derick truly respects that PTA works for ALL CHILDREN and encourages all members of the community to join PTA today.