Biography

Councilmember Luis Chavez was elected to the Fresno City Council as the District 5 representative in November of 2016 and sworn into office in January 2017. Prior to his election to the City Council he was a Fresno Unified School District Board Member and Chief of Staff to former Fresno City Councilmember Sal Quintero in District 5. As a School Board Member and Chief of Staff to a Fresno City Councilmember, Luis has dedicated his life to the children and families of South Fresno.

Raised in Fresno and the Central Valley, the son of immigrant farm workers Luis graduated from Roosevelt High School, home of the Rough Riders. His education continued as he earned an AA Degree in Business Administration from Fresno City College leading him to earn both a Bachelors and Masters Degree in Public Administration from Fresno State University.

After college Luis looked to find work that would allow him to reinvest in our community. He has dedicated his career to helping children and youth as a mentor, community college educator, youth program leader, literacy volunteer and ultimately as a Fresno Unified School Board Member. Luis gained experience working in the classroom as a teacher in Fresno County Schools and at Fresno City College where he taught courses to help first generation college students succeed. He also served as Program Director for Big Brothers Big Sisters of Central California, covering Kern, Kings, Fresno and Tulare counties, where he learned how investing in a child’s life can make a world of difference.

His twin daughters inspired Luis to seek election to the Fresno Unified School District Board, where as a Trustee he worked to reduce classroom size, boost graduation rates, and expand sports and after school programs that are so vital to the success of many of our kids. Luis fought for universal access for pre-kindergarten aged children and expansion of “Parent University”, a program that has trained over 12,00 parents to navigate the educational system and help students apply for college. His tenure at Fresno Unified culminated with him being elected Board President and leading the 4th largest school district in California, which encompasses 10,000 employees and a $1 Billion operations budget.

Knowing that we need to reinvest in our workforce and prepare our children for the jobs of tomorrow, Luis has supported vocational training programs so that graduates are trained for jobs in healthcare, business administration and auto mechanics to name a few. Luis has worked closely with law enforcement to reduce gang activity and to find ways to keep youth from trouble that would derail their futures.

Luis strives to be the voice of the people he represents and looks forward to providing service to the constituents of District 5 and the City of Fresno.