Garcia Hernandez Sawhney is proud to share that Founding Partner Bonny Garcia was selected by the Board of Directors of the California Association for Bilingual Education (CABE) to receive its prestigious CABE 2026 Visionary: Forging the Path Forward Board Award presented to an individual they recognize as a special visionary who has significantly impacted education equity for California’s students.

This recognition reflects the CABE Board’s appreciation for Bonny’s visionary leadership in the Visual and Performing Arts in particular, including his work as President of the Board of Directors of the Latino Film Institute https://latinofilm.org/ and co-founder of the Youth Cinema Project (YCP) https://youthcinemaproject.org/ which has empowered students—especially those from underserved communities—to develop critical skills, creativity, and cultural pride through filmmaking. As stated by CABE Board President and Bakersfield City School District Superintendent, Karling Aguilera-Fort, to Bonny: “Your contributions exemplify the power of the arts to promote educational equity and community building, leaving a lasting legacy in the educational community.”

CABE’s Immediate Past President, Raul Maldonado, Superintendent of the Palmdale School District, who co-presented the award at the conference emphasized the difference the program makes for student engagement and added: “Bonny is also an effective lawyer who has been fighting for the disadvantaged — those students who don’t get an equal chance. He is the champ.”

Bonny’s leadership has helped expand the vision of LFI and YCP Co-Founder Edward James Olmos, transforming what began as a small grant-funded experiment to one of the most influential and impactful arts programs for young people in California and beyond. By pairing professional filmmakers with classroom teachers, YCP offers in-school curriculum aligned with California ELA and Media Arts Standards where students write scripts, pitch them and then develop them into films by performing all essential roles from set design, boom operators and camera operators to actors, producers, and directors. Every year of the program’s existence, Bonny and the LFI team have found new ways of bringing incredible opportunities for students, including industry internships and scholarships. Students premiere their films at the Los Angeles Latino International Film Festival, walking the red carpet alongside Edward James Olmos and other celebrities and participating in Q&A audience sessions, taking questions from their perch on director chairs, sometimes from industry professionals scouting for new and emerging talent.

In his acceptance remarks, Bonny thanked his GHS partners for allowing him the time to devote to this incredible nonprofit work and credited his wife Laura, a highly respected bilingual teacher, for capturing the essence of the impact of YCP. Bonny said: “She wrote about the story in every child’s heart. Our community is massively talented, and we just need to give them a way and that is what LFI and YCP do. Children learn that through the work of creating film, their stories act as powerful tools for inspiration and empathy – and it’s personal. And the best thing she wrote was that ‘YCP is the wish come true for children who didn’t even know they had that wish.’”

We are grateful to have such a visionary Partner in our firm, and to celebrate the shared commitment he and his equally visionary life partner bring to to education and community.