Diana Careaga is the director of First 5 LA’s Family Supports Department, which focuses on enhancing family well-being by ensuring that parents and caregivers have the resources they need to support their children’s well-being and healthy development. In this role, Diana guides strategies focused on coordinating services, supporting workforce development and advancing policy and systems change to improve how families access early supports. She is a member of the Leadership Team and serves as an adviser to the executive vice president of First 5 LA’s Center for Family Systems and Human Resources.
Diana brings more than 25 years of experience in public health and program design, with a strong foundation in maternal and child health and deep roots in community engagement. Prior to First 5 LA, she served as a project manager at Central City Neighborhood Partners, where she developed and oversaw Women and Community, a promotora-based health program focused on empowering women to be advocates for their community. Her prior work includes positions in adolescent health, youth education and international public health research.
As part of her commitment to supporting children and families, Diana has completed numerous training programs, including the National Leadership Academy for the Public’s Health and SoCal Grantmakers’ Emerging Leaders Peer-to-Peer Network Program. She has also participated in a range of professional trainings focused on strengthening parenting skills, including trauma-informed and nonviolent child-rearing practices. Diana is also a board member for the Attachment and Trauma Network, a national organization focused on promoting healing of children impacted by trauma by supporting families, schools and communities.
The daughter of immigrant parents, Diana earned her master’s degree in public health from UCLA and her bachelor’s degree in sociology from the University of California, Davis. Diana lives in Monrovia with her husband and is the parent of four children with two still at home. She enjoys traveling and spending time with her family and pets.
