In 1992 , Quezada was elected as the President of the Board of Education , and was the first Latina to hold that position . As president , she recruited teachers from Mexico to make up for a shortage of bilingual teachers . She led the board through some of its most chaotic years , which included a battle against state school vouchers ( Proposition 174 ) , teacher strikes , attempts to break up the district , a controversial redistricting effort that ensured greater Latino representation on the board at the expense of the San Fernando Valley , and $ 700 million in damage to district facilities caused by the 1994 Northridge earthquake . Two years after her election to President , Quezada announced that she would step down from the school board . Her departure coincided with the passage of Proposition 187 , which forced public schools to bar undocumented children
1994 Northridge earthquake
1994 Northridge earthquake
Leticia Quezada