Sacramento Hispanic Chamber of Commerce
Mayor Joe Serna, Jr. Scholarship Program
Mayor Joe Serna, Jr. earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Social Science/Government from Sacramento State or City College in 1966 and attended graduate school at UC, Davis, majoring in Political Science. In 1969 he joined the faculty at CSU, Sacramento, where he became a Professor of Government until his death at age 60.
Here are some of the accomplishments Mayor Joe Serna Jr. acquired. He was awarded the CSUS Distinguished Faculty Award in 1991. In 1975, he took a two-year leave of absence to serve as Education Advisor to then- Lieutenant Governor Mervyn Dymally, and was active in Sacramento government and political affairs over 30 years. In June 1998 he was presented an honorary doctorate degree from Golden Gate University.
First elected to the Sacramento City council in 1981, representing District 5, he assumed his duties as Mayor of the city of Sacramento in November 1992 and was re-elected in 1996. Because of his strong interest in the education of children, he established the Mayor’s Commission on Education and the City’s Future and the Mayor’s Commission on Our Children’s Health. He also founded the Mayor’s Summer Reading Camp, which is an annual literacy program for below average scoring second and third grade students.
In one of his last public appearances, Mayor Joe Serna, Jr. took part in a “Keeping the Promise” event at Thomas Jefferson Elementary School. It celebrated Sacramento City Unified School District gains in the SAT 9 State student achievement tests. The following are excerpts from his remarks:
“Mayors are not elected to sit in the mayor’s office and take up oxygen. Mayors are elected to lead. The mayor is the leader of the community ... As the leader of the community, the business of the mayor is the city and everything that happens in the city...the role I played as the mayor was to re- engage the community and kids and reinvest in the school district. And it’s paying off - but it’s not over. I am a teacher. Teaching is still my first love. I understand what it is like when a child learns right in front of you - and that’s really great. And when that happens it means something good is happening ... When that occurs, then we build community and rebuild that investment in the city that we love and in the schools that we care about - and most importantly in the children who really need our help and support.”
Mayor Joe Serna Jr., passed away early Sunday Morning, November 7, 1999 of metastatic kidney cancer at home with his family. He was a man, who from humble beginnings built successful thirty year career, as both an educator and public servant. As a Professor of Government, he exuded genuine passion for the political process, and transferred that energy and wonder to his students. He instilled in them their importance within our democratic society, and a belief in their own abilities to make a difference.
Mayor Joe Serna Jr. Serna leaves an exceptional legacy of leadership and accomplishments, including the revitalization of Sacramento’s downtown core, a stronger public school system, more jobs, more community police, and a higher quality of life that will benefit this entire region for decades to come. He built coalitions and ignited community involvement. A man who never compromised his values, Mayor Joe Serna, Jr. was a man who brought honor and dignity to the Sacramento community.
The SHCC has maintained as one of its core values, the need to provide support, mentoring and scholarships for the youth in the Sacramento region. It is estimated that the chamber has given over $400,000 in scholarships over the years. Today, the number and amount of scholarships continues to increase due to the generous contributions from corporations, foundations, business owners and individuals made to the Sacramento Hispanic Chamber of Commerce (SHCC).
