Asian Journal- The Filipino-American Community Newspaper

JACQUELINE Lingad-Ricci is a commissioner in the City and County of San Francisco Immigrants Rights Commission.

The mission of the Immigrant Rights Commission is to improve, enhance and preserve the quality of life and civic participation of all immigrants in the City and County of San Francisco.

San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom appointed Lingad-Ricci on May 18, 2009 to the Immigrant Rights Commission.

She has also served in the Juvenile Probation Commission where former San Francisco Mayor Willie Brown appointed her. She was the first Fil-Am to become president of a commission in the City & County of San Francisco, according to her bio.

Lingad-Ricci began her career in the Philippines, where she worked for the Minister of Tourism before serving as a Congressional Liaison to the political sector of the US Embassy in Manila.

Upon arriving in the United States, she utilized her entrepreneurial spirit to establish a travel business in 1994 and later in 2000 establish a travel & tourism school. She has always been a dedicated activist in her community, volunteering with organizations focused on a range of issues including homelessness, disaster relief, education, medical care, and job skill development.

The Immigrant Rights Commission is responsible for making recommendations to the Board of Supervisors and the Mayor to further involve immigrants in local government process including holding annual public hearings to obtain input from the immigrant community about programs, policies, and issues that relate to immigrants who are the residents of the City and County; advise the Board of Supervisors and the Mayor on state and federal legislation related to immigrants; develop a plan for outreach to, and education of, the public to increase public awareness of the contributions made by immigrants to the local economy, educational institutions, and other fields in San Francisco; and recommend to the Board and the Mayor on the participation of the city and County of San Francisco in publicizing and presenting concerns of immigrants in San Francisco within regional and national efforts to protect the rights of immigrants.