History
Mission Language And Vocational School (MLVS) has been in continuous operation for the past 50+ years. MLVS is well-known and respected in the community. The concept of MLVS was established in 1962 by Mexican laborers who were members of the Construction Laborers Union Local 261. Realizing the need for education and job training, they established the “Centro Social Obrero,” which in 1968 transformed into MLVS. After incorporation in 1971, the school was able to purchase the facility at 2929 19th Street and expand its instructional programs. Formerly the site of the Pelton Water Wheel Company, the 35,072-square-foot building today houses twenty classrooms, a testing unit, administrative offices, a language lab/media center, fully equipped computer and office simulation classrooms, a multi-purpose student center, and the Florida Street Catering Services, a flourishing catering operation that serves clientele both off/on-site in our spacious hall/banquet facility. MLVS is a recognized leader and innovator in the field of Vocational Medical Assistant Certification, Culinary Skills Certification, and an expert in job-skills training.
Founder
Abel Gonzalez 1962
Mr. Gonzalez arrived from Mexico at the age of 23, with only $200 in his pocket and the belief that San Francisco was “A magical Place where anyone could start again.” He believed that education was a key ingredient for immigrant communities. As a rank-and-file member of the Laborer’s Local Union 261, he pursued his vision of equal education for immigrants and took on a leadership role in unifying his fellow workers by founding The Central Social Obrero & later Mission Language and Vocational School (MLVS). Central Social Obrero, an organization of immigrant workers, became a local voice of immigrant workers and a local voice in the labor community and the San Francisco Latino community at large.
Rosario Anaya
Rosario Anaya, Executive Director, 1973 - 2015
Originally from Cochabamba, Bolivia, Ms. Anaya received a B.A. in Public Administration and a Master’s in Counseling and Psychology from the University of San Francisco, she was also a graduate of UCLA’s Anderson School of Business. She served as the Executive Director of MLVS from 1973-2015. From its inception, MLVS has served over 25,000 students who have made contributions in virtually all sectors of society and business.
In 2001, Ms. Anaya was voted onto the Board of Directors for The Green Lining Institute, served on the Board of Pacific News Service/New America Media until 2015, as well as a long-standing Board Member for Paradigm Productions. She was a former Vice President and member of the San Francisco Redevelopment Commission, appointed Commissioner in 2010 by then-Mayor Gavin Newsom. Previously in her political career, Ms. Anaya was appointed to the San Francisco Board of Education by late Mayor George Moscone, in citywide elections she was elected to 4-year terms in 1978, 1982, and 1986. She also served twice as School Board President and was the first Latin American woman elected to public office in the City’s history.
Ms. Anaya served on several boards and committees throughout her career and was the recipient of many awards, notably the Order of Francisco de Miranda Medallion from the President of the Republic of Venezuela, and in 2012 she received the OHTLI Award from the Mexican government. Some of the other distinguished awards that she received were from the Volunteers of America Bay Area, Inc., the San Francisco Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, Californians for Solar and Clean Energy, Hispanic Women Making History, and the Latino Heritage Month Education award. Posthumously, she was awarded the Dolores Huerta Lifetime Achievement award, and inducted into the NEN Hall of Fame.
The Rosario Anaya Educational Center
On August 20, 2016, the building which houses MLVS at 2929 19th Street in the Mission District of San Francisco, was dedicated and named “The Rosario Anaya Education Center/El Centro Educational de Rosario Anaya”, honoring longtime MLVS Executive Director and education advocate, Ms. Rosario Anaya.