LEADERSHIP

MARICELA GARCÍA
Chief Executive Officer

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Maricela García is the Chief Executive Officer of Gads Hill Center, a community based organization founded in 1898 that creates opportunities for children and their families to build better lives through education, access to resources, and community engagement. Ms. García has more than twenty years of experience in nonprofit management leading organizations through start-up, turnaround, and expansion.

Ms. García is the former Executive Director of the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights and founding Executive Director of the Latino Policy Forum. Prior to Gads Hill Center, she was the Director of Capacity Building and Juvenile Justice Policy at the National Council of La Raza, now named UnidosUS.

Ms. García came to the United States in the early 1980s as a result of the war in Guatemala. After her arrival in the U.S., she founded Casa Guatemala to assist newly arriving refugees and later co-founded Women for Guatemala, an organization dedicated to building solidarity among women in the U.S. with emerging women's organizations in Guatemala. As a member of the Peace and Justice Committee, she engaged the international community in monitoring and upholding human rights in Guatemala by advocating at the United Nations General Assembly and Committees during the 1980s.

Ms. García has served on various boards and councils including the National Immigration Forum, the National Network for Immigrant and Refugee Rights, Northwestern University Human Rights Center, the Chicago Community Renewal Society, Illinois Partners for Human Services, and Chapin Hall at the University of Chicago. 

​Ms. García holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Public Administration from Northeastern University and a Master's degree in Social Work from the University of Illinois at Chicago. In addition, she was a policy fellow at Harvard University's Kennedy School of Government.

Ms. García has been the recipient of several fellowships and awards, including the Chicago Community Trust Senior Leader Fellowship, National Hispana Leadership Institute Fellowship, Leadership Greater Chicago Fellowship, Latinos of the Southwest Excellence in Leadership Award, and Casa Guatemala Human Rights Award. In 2001, Chicago Woman Magazine nominated Ms. García as one of the 100 most prominent leaders making a difference in the quality of life of Chicagoans. The same year, she received the Bannerman Fellowship, which allowed her to study the correlation between economic development and migration in Mexico, Central America, and the United States. More recently, the Latino Policy Forum awarded Ms. Garcia in 2015 with the Champion of Change Award; that year, she was also presented with the Community Service Award for Tireless Service to the Latino Community at the 13th Annual Illinois Legislative Latino Caucus Foundation (ILLCF) Conference.

Ms. García has two children who are the inspiration of her life: Daniella and Camilo.  

ERNESTO DE LA TORRE
Chief Financial Officer

With more than 15 years experience in financial non-profit management, Mr. De La Torre currently is Gads Hills Center's Chief Financial Officer. Mr. De La Torre joined Gads Hill Center in 1999 as an accounting assistant. During the last eight years, Mr. De La Torre has held positions with increasing accounting and financial responsibilities. In addition, he has provided training to other nonprofit organizations on topics such as financial management, internal control, cost savings, budgeting and financial reporting. Mr. De La Torre received his B.A. in Accounting from the University of Guadalajara.

​ROSA JULIA GARCIA RIVERA
Chief Operating Officer

​Ms. Garcia Rivera is an Illinois state Licensed Clinical Professional Therapist with over 20 years of culturally competent clinical experience in the mental health services field. She has worked as a mental health consultant since 2002, and is the owner and operator of Rivera Mental Health Consultants, a firm specializing in mental health-related strategies that provides services to schools and mental health agencies. In 2016, she became the Director of Mental Health and Youth Services at Gads Hill Center. Ms. Garcia Rivera received her Bachelor’s degree from Northern Illinois University, and her Master’s degree in Counseling Education from Northeastern University. With a concentration in child and adolescent therapy, as well as a depth of knowledge in trauma-focused therapy, Ms. Garcia Rivera has extensive experience in the treatment of adults, adolescents and children with a variety of severe psychological, emotional and behavioral disorders. She also serves as a Clinical Supervisor to other mental health professionals and students in various settings, has taught Master's level courses, and is currently an adjunct professor at Erikson Institute. She works systemically, taking a non-judgmental, strengths-based approach, to create desired change and emotional growth, helping individuals and systems build internal social emotional capacity.
 
Ms. Garcia Rivera is continually motivated by her husband Danny and two children, Vida Rosa and Gael Ruben.

​BREANA HERNANDEZ
Director of Development and Communications

​​Breana oversees the development and communication strategies for Gads Hill Center. She is a native of South Bend, IN and has worked in the Chicago nonprofit community since 2014. Her career has been shaped by various institutions such as the American Lung Association, National Museum of Mexican Art, and Ronald McDonald House Charities. She received an MA in Nonprofit Administration from Lindenwood University and a Bachelor’s in Criminal Justice and Psychology. Breana developed unwavering devotion for the nonprofit sector as a development volunteer focused on grant research. She quickly developed a deep appreciation for nonprofits and their vital role to improve the quality of life for all our communities.

She is inspired by the compassion and perseverance of the many individuals who have impacted her journey and by those who continue to work tirelessly to strengthen our society.

NORA R. BARBOZA
Director of Children's Programs

Nora joined Gads Hill Center in 2015 as the Partner Network Manager and became the Director of Children’s Programs in 2018. Having been a single mother for over a decade, she advocates daily for parents to become their child’s first teachers. Ms. Barboza was born and raised in Pilsen by immigrant parents who encouraged her to seek the education they never had. In 1999, Nora began her path in Early Childhood when she enrolled her son into a Head Start childhood center. Her experience as a Head Start parent inspired her to pursue an associate degree in Early Childhood Education from Daley College. She continued on to receive a bachelor of arts in Family Studies from DePaul University and director’s credentials through National Louis University.
 
Nora is inspired every day by her children, David Arturo, Isaac Adan, and Nailea Alicia. She is dedicated to ensure they pursue their dreams through education and to build a legacy of their own.  

NILSA ORTIZ
Director of Youth and Mental Health Services

Nilsa Ortiz joined GHC soon after earning her MSW degree in 2015. Nilsa is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW) with a master’s in leadership development in Social Services, from Loyola University and a Bachelor’s Degree in Social Justice and Sociology from Northeastern Illinois University. Nilsa has professional and volunteer experience in community outreach, client advocacy, and providing therapeutic and crisis de-escalation services for disadvantaged youth and families within diverse populations. Nilsa has unique clinical background with proven impact in workforce, education and community engagement.