After interviewing 11 applicants Monday evening, the Santa Barbara Unified School District’s Board of Education unanimously appointed Ismael Ulloa, 35, to fill the seat vacated last month by newly elected state Assemblymember Monique Limón.
Ulloa, a bilingual first-generation Santa Barbaran from a low-income Latino family, attended district schools from preschool and in 2007 graduated with a history degree from UCSB. He earned a master’s in education from Antioch University last year. He currently serves on the Future Leaders of America board of directors and works at Santa Barbara City College’s Express to Success outreach program for high schoolers, talking with parents about college prep, applications, and financial aid.
“I want to help the students and parents in our district so that they need not struggle needlessly and … can feel more connected to our schools,” he said.