SOCG Team

THE STANDING ON COMMON GROUND TEAM

Ron M. Rubine

Founder - Facilitator

A native Californian, Ron fell into education accidentally back in 1986 but developed an immediate affinity for children and teaching. A cagey veteran of four game shows and an aspiring actor, his acting bug turned out to be a desire for fame and fortune but carried no commitment to the craft and after passing the CBEST on a dare, starting as a fourth grade teacher in South Central Los Angeles at Manchester Avenue Elementary School.

As a teacher, he was struck by the strength and resilience exhibited by students who had to overcome circumstances far more aversive than those he was exposed to in his hometown of Lakeside, a hamlet in East County San Diego. It became clear to Ron that one of his primary goals in education was to build upon that foundation of strength by providing opportunities for students to recognize their worth and value and to support them in growing into a personal vision that would serve them, their school and community.

Ron went on to serve as a human relations advisor, conducting over 1,500 trainings on prejudice and discrimination, and then as a human relations administrator in East Los Angeles, where he worked directly with schools struggling with intergroup conflict on their campus. After that, Ron served in several capacities with the L. A. City Schools including 2 years as a Counselor at G. W. Carver Middle School in South Los Angeles.

The crux of Ron’s work came in 2005 in the wake of several large-scale race-based riots that took place at over 15 Los Angeles campuses. Through SOCG programs, Ron worked with over 10,000 students from the affected schools focusing on developing strategies that would positively affect the climate and culture of the respective schools.

A variety of projects and programs were implemented at the targeted schools resulting in qualitative shifts in variables such as suspensions, referrals, truancy, and standardized test scores. At three of these high schools, there was at least an 85% decrease in suspension among the targeted participants.

Ron is an avid, albeit, golfer, and loves to root for the Los Angeles Lakers. His parents still live in San Diego and he has an 8-month old son, Julian.

Jennifer Gorman, Senior Facilitator

Jennifer Gorman was born in Wahiawa, Hawaii and raised in Pomona, California and has been an educator for 13 years.

Jennifer prides herself on her capacity to reach any student anywhere, regardless of demographic, and has a deep empathy for those who struggle given her own challenges in adolescence.

Of those 13 years in education, 11 have been spent in South Central Los Angeles serving middles school students at Charles Drew Middle School. Jennifer has taught Physical Education at all K-12 levels and has been an advocate for children throughout her career.

Ms. Gorman currently serves as the Dean of Students and coordinates the Positive Behavior Support Program. The Positive Behavior Support Program has incorporated proactive strategies to offer supports to students in need of behavioral interventions. She makes it a practice to collaborate with all stakeholders to establish a safe working environment for students, teachers, administrators, and support staff at a school historically at risk.

As a SOCG facilitator, Jennifer brings strength, compassion and a sense of humor that is always received well by the participants. She was the lead facilitator on the highly successful 2007 partnership with L. A. City Attorney Rocky Delgadillo and Markham Middle School during the STEP project and has also dramatically decreased aversive variables at her home school such as opportunity transfers and suspensions.As the Beyond the Bell Site Facilitator at Drew Middle School, Jennifer was named the “Youth Services Program Coordinator of the Year” in 2002.

Jennifer likes golf (she beats Ron often) and any activity that requires breaking a sweat. She was a star athlete in college and hasn’t lost that competitive edge.

Guillermo Valdez, Senior Facilitator

Guillermo, a Chicago native of Afro-American and Afro-Latino decent, is a therapist who has been providing individual, family, and group therapy as well as school-based counseling since 1998. His degree in Depth Psychology has enabled him to explore the innermost workings of rites of passages and archetypal psychology. His big picture goal is to examine the root energy that serves as the catalyst for the actions and behaviors exhibited by our youths.

Guillermo began his work by leading wilderness trips for at-risk youths in throughout the United States and more recently has leads trips throughout Nicaragua and Honduras. Guillermo lives and continues to work with youth in the Los Angeles area and has helped facilitate workshops with SOCG and the Transition Institutes. Guillermo loves to shoot hoops and played competitively in college and is always up for a nice champagne brunch on any given Sunday.

Keicher Payne, Lead Facilitator



Keicher has been a SOCG team member for over 10 years and has extensive experience working all of SOCG’s programs. She is a native Angeleno who, as a child and adolescent, attended several different schools in very different communities from Palos Verdes to Compton.

In addition to her work with SOCG, Keicher owns and operates her own day spa in Long Beach called Everyday Zen. Couple that commitment to spiritual and physical well being with her Degree in Philosophy from the American University in Paris, and it becomes clear how much of a contribution Keicher is to the participants of SOCG.

Serafin Alvarez, Facilitator

Serafin, from Delano, CA, has always had aspirations of a life in politics. In the meantime, the long-time secondary educator spends his time working with students in South Los Angeles and facilitating for SOCG.

As a lead facilitator, Serafin was an integral part of the Thomas Jefferson High School Transition Institutes that included the school’s entire 9^th grade class (750 students) over the course of 2008-09 school year and has been involved in many other SOCG projects.

Standing on Common Ground also maintains a cadre of project-specific contract trainers

that are experts in their respective fields.

"Sowing the Seeds of Success through Purpose and Partnership"