Silva honored as October Employee of the Month

Helena has taken on the important role of Senior Director and redefined the job description. All of the programs she has personally implemented or helped initiate within the department have allowed Fresno County’s youth to be empowered through extended learning and mentoring. As her tenure at FCSS progresses, Helena has proven that no role is a barrier to her or the students and staff she serves.

Currently, FCSS’s After School Consortium is the fourth largest in California and the sixth largest in the nation. Helena has played a major role in guiding the After School Program to what it is today, serving more than 40,000 students daily in almost 150 schools in 25 school districts. In just over three years, Helena and her team developed “You Matter Day” in partnership with OK Produce and Every Monday Matters. During this event, local youth and staff from various schools collaborate to complete projects aimed at helping those in need.

Helena’s leadership skills are stellar and she has a passion for student success and fostering transformative change through building positive relationships. She has been able to capture the hearts of her constituents and create self-efficacy in them to accomplish incredible goals in after school programs.

Helena believes in coaching, motivation and has keen interpersonal skills. She takes pride in showing concern for all team members who may be from different cultures, diverse backgrounds and personal belief systems because she knows they contribute to the rich collaboration and cohesiveness of the group. Most importantly, Helena has committed herself to perfecting programs that allow Fresno County students to achieve beyond the perceived barriers of higher education.

“Seeing what happens in our programs, I wish I had that opportunity when I was in school,” said Helena. “I want our students to feel confident they will get their homework done and will be able to share with their family something fun they did in our program. And, I hope they can’t wait to come back the next day.”