About Our Teachers

Gloria Torres and
Amber Llacuna-Benavente

Gloria Torres is the director of the BVCDC. She is a long time Sacramento Early Childhood educator. Her life-long passion has been children’s health and education. She is well known in the community for her outstanding volunteer services and leadership roles, and at any one time is involved in at least half a dozen causes including Festival de la Familia, American GI Forum, and the Leukemia Society and has been a big supporter in fund-raising for the Boys and Girls Club of Sacramento. She has been directing children’s educational programs for over 25 years, with an emphasis on cultural awareness. Her academic education has centered on Child Development and she possesses a degree in Early Childhood Education. She has an Associate of Arts degree from Sacramento City College. Torres was a child development director for five years working in the camps with migrant children. She was the director at Sacramento Montessori School in Sacramento and also spent 15 years as the director at La Petite Academy in Citrus Heights.

Amber Llacuna-Benavente is Head Teacher for BVCDC. She graduated from CSU, Sacramento in 2006 with a BA in Liberal Studies with a concentration in Child Development. Originally, she wanted to become a teacher/counselor in public junior high schools, but upon learning much about how the current school systems operate, she discovered that she would be able to make much more of a difference elsewhere.

“I have a love of all cultures and traditions, but the native way of life is what calls me,” she said . “I have always wanted to be a teacher in a place where I could truly make a difference in not only children’s lives but also in the community,” she said. Amber grew up in Sacramento but would also spend summers and holidays with her dad and family in Hawaii. She claims to be “a mix of many wonderful nationalities including Filipino-Hawaiian, French, German, Chamorro, and Native American.”

“I am wonderfully blessed to be able to be a part of this extraordinary school and loving community. I put all of my heart into working with these children and will always try to do my best to honor the spirit of this beautiful school.”

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Our School

The Center was founded by Chairwoman Rhonda Morningstar Pope and the Buena Vista Rancheria in the spring of 2007 to bring a culturally appropriate preschool experience for Native American children and others from the ages of 2 years to 5 years 6 months.The Center is housed in an historical building in downtown Sacramento at 1412 – 20th Street. Stories, arts and crafts and tribal traditions of enrolled children are part of the curriculum. Breakfast, lunch and two snacks are cooked daily in the newly remodeled and equipped kitchen. Volunteers restructured and rebuilt our outdoor play area, complete with new lawn and playground equipment. The Center is working with the Washoe Tribe of Nevada and California Native TANF Program, Child Action and other agencies in Sacramento to provide services for eligible families. The Center is open Monday – Friday from 7:30am to 5:30pm. Tuition is $840.00 per month. There are fourteen spaces available for daycare enrollment. To tour the site please call:
(916) 446-1200.

BVCDC Mission Statement

Our early childhood program provides children with a calm and joyful experience filled with magic and reverence, not dissimilar to the way children were raised historically by California Native Americans. Each child is met with the “Three Gifts” – the Gift of Love; the Gift of Time and the Gift of Understanding..

The Gift of Love: Caregivers provide Love and interest in the child.

The Gift of Time is given by allowing them to play and explore the world before rushing them into academic learning.

The Gift of Understanding is given by adults who strive to understand their developmental needs, perceive the children as unique and special people, and embody confident, developed role models. The Gift of Understanding is broad – Understanding how artistic activity can empower and firm up a sense of worth and capability; understanding how rhythm and routine builds strength; understanding how important it is for children to “go slow to go fast.”

Fostering the magic of childhood builds a foundation not only a creative and flexible
thinking later in life but also helps preserve the merriment and awe inherent in a young child.