Lara earned his B.A. in journalism/Spanish/Chicano Studies from San Diego State University. He went on to be a master's candidate in leadership from the University of Southern California.
Ricardo Lara has been committed to ensuring that all Californians have access to an affordable and quality public education, including higher education, to prepare them for today’s workforce demands.
- Authored SB 1174, which placed a successful initiative before voters to repeal provisions of Proposition 227 that have created major barriers for dual-immersion language programs. SB 1174 would then provide school districts, teachers, and parents with a process to work together to start dual-immersion, multilingual language programs.
- Authored SB 1111, which ensures that students being temporarily placed in county community schools have a successful transfer to and from those schools. Currently students who are involuntary transferred experience low academic achievement and have high dropout rates. The bill will ensure the proper considerations are made when a student is involuntarily transferred, including whether there is space for the student, if the school is geographically accessible, and if the school can meet the particular educational needs of the student. The bill also makes sure students who win their expulsion hearings are not involuntarily transferred.
- Authored SB 150, which enabled community college districts to waive nonresident tuition for high school students who concurrently enroll on a part-time basis at a California community college, enabling undocumented students to take community college classes without paying nonresident tuition.