Beginning in 2007, Porterville City Council members have annually nominated individuals to the Porterville Wall of Fame, located on the east wall at Porterville City Hall. On Friday, 15 new inductees were celebrated, five each for the years 2020, 2021 and 2022, taking the total on the famed wall to 64.
Honored for 2022 were Cynthia Brown, Daniel Hackey, George Tanimoto, Barbara Wong Sue, and the late Nicki Edwards. The five were nominated by Porterville Mayor Martha A. Flores, Vice Mayor Kellie Carrillo, and council members Monte Reyes, Milt Stowe and Lawana Tate, respectively.
2022 Wall of Fame inductees
CYNTHIA GARCIA BROWN
Born and raised in Porterville, Brown is the Director of Pathways for Porterville Unified School District.
Brown attended UCLA and holds a master's in Counseling Psychology and Educational Leadership and worked as a university academic advisor.
For the past 14 years, she has led the development of a district-wide Linked Learning Pathways Program which now provides 14 college preparatory and career pathways for PUSD students. She prides herself in the fact every pathway student has a resume, interview skills and internship opportunities under their belt before graduation. Pathway students are also educated on the importance of giving back to their community through volunteerism, working with non-profits, and tutoring students.
Brown has secured more than $56 million in grant funding for the PUSD Pathways program through private companies and the California Department of Education. Brown and her PUSD colleagues have developed a successful system of pathway academies that have received statewide, national, and international recognition.
Brown has also been instrumental in building multiple partnerships with workforce and professional industry experts to connect educational lessons with the real world, which placed Porterville on the map with corporate sponsors such as Qualcomm, Sunpower, Gates Foundation, Garner Holt Productions, Apple, and Google.
Brown was recognized as a California Linked Learning Educator Champion in 2017 and the Porterville Chamber of Commerce Woman of the Year in 2018.