SAMANTHA QUINTERO is the Minority Worker Training Program Coordinator. She is responsible for increasing the number of underrepresented minorities in the construction and environmental remediation industries. The program provides pre-employment job training, life skills, environmental preparation and related courses in construction skills training; environmental worker training includes hazardous waste worker, lead awareness and OSHA 10 training.
Prior to working at UCLA-LOSH, Ms. Quintero was the Director of the Figueroa Corridor Community Jobs Program at Strategic Actions for a Just Economy (SAJE). SAJE is a community based organization located in South Los Angeles that focuses on community organizing, coalition-building, and implementing grassroots policy for benefits of the community. In 2008, Ms. Quintero represented SAJE in the UCLA Community Scholar’s Program that studied Labor Agreements in Los Angeles. The Community Scholars Program brings together labor and community leaders with graduate students from urban planning and other departments to study issues in depth with the goal of providing a forum in which to develop and further the skills that are required to influence policy. She holds her Master's degree in Social Work from the University of Southern California.