Chief Executive Officer
Ms. Jane Garcia is the Chief Executive Officer of La Clínica de La Raza, Inc. (La Clínica) a federally qualified health center headquartered in Oakland, California and the largest community based primary health care center in the San Francisco Bay Area. Ms. Garcia has led La Clínica since she became CEO in 1982. In her 34 years as CEO, Ms. Garcia has grown La Clínica from a $2 million project to an over $110 million dollar organization, employing over 1,000 people. Under her leadership, services have been extended from Alameda County to Contra Costa and Solano counties. Over 86,000 patients per year are served across 35 sites in Alameda, Contra Costa and Solano Counties totaling more than 328,000 annual visits, making La Clínica is one of the largest community health centers in the State of California.
Ms. Garcia serves on various boards. Her colleagues elected her to an unprecedented three-year term as President of the California Primary Care Association, the State-wide association of community health centers. She has served as President of The California Endowment, the Alameda Alliance for Health, Community Health Center Network, and Community Clinic Consortium. She serves on the Board of Directors of the California Primary Care Association, the Oakland Thrives Leadership Council, the East Bay Health Workforce Partnership, and the Solano Coalition for Better Health.
Ms. Garcia has won several awards for her commitment to preserving community health, including the 1987 Common Cause Award for Public Service Achievement, the Equal Rights Advocates award “for her continuing success in seeing that every woman, man and child has access to culturally and linguistically appropriate health care regardless of the ability to pay”; and, the Public Policy Award from the Prenatal Network of Alameda/Contra Costa Counties. In 2004, Ms. Garcia received the YMCA Martin Luther King, Jr Leadership Prize for Human Dignity and Brotherhood award and was inducted into the Women’s Hall of Fame by the Contra Costa Commission for Women, which honored her with the “Women Improving Health Care” award. In 2007, Ms. Garcia was honored by the San Francisco Foundation’s Community Leadership Award and was recognized by the East Bay Business Times as a 2007 Women of Distinction. Ms. Garcia was inducted into the Alameda County Women’s Hall of Fame, and received the National Association of Community Health Centers 2010 Betsey K. Cooke Advocacy MVP Award. In 2017, the San Francisco Business Times recognized Ms. Garcia as a Most Admired CEO and in 2018 was the recipient of the Most Influential Women in Business award. Ms. Garcia was also recognized as one of UC Berkeley’s School of Public Health’s 75 Influential Alumni.
Ms. Garcia received her BA from Yale University and her Masters from the University of California at Berkeley School of Public Health. Ms. Garcia is originally from El Paso, Texas.
Ms. Garcia is a community advocate with a passion for preserving community health care for all residents, and is a recognized leader in community health and the provision of services for underserved communities. Ms. Garcia is fluent in English and can speak conversational Spanish.