Flora Arca Mata (December 19, 1917 – September 11, 2013) was an American teacher in Stockton, California. She became the first Filipino American teacher in California.[1] In 2019, a new elementary school was named after her in the Stockton Unified School District.[2]
Flora Arca Mata | |
|---|---|
 Mata in 2009 | |
| Born | December 19, 1917 Honolulu, Hawaii |
| Died | September 11, 2013 (aged 95) Stockton, California |
| Nationality | American |
| Occupation | Teacher |
| Known for | First Filipino American teacher in California |
| Spouse | Vidal Mata |
| Children | 2 |
| Academic background | |
| Alma mater | University of California, Los Angeles |
Biography
editMata was born in Honolulu, to Jose Arca and Victoria Salcedo,[3] who were from Cavite and Bacolod respectively.[4] Mata's family moved to Stockton when she was two;[5] they were attracted to Stockton because of Little Manila, which had one of the largest Filipino communities in the United States at the time.[6] She was the second youngest of six siblings.[3] While baptized a Roman Catholic, as a child she attended an interfaith Protestant church, and converted to Protestantism.[7] In 1930, her father who was working as a labor contractor, died in an automobile accident.[4]
Funded by an older sister, who was working as a farmworker, Mata attended college at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA).[5] While at UCLA, she got to know her fellow student Jackie Robinson.[8] She became the first Filipino American to graduate from UCLA.[5] She married her classmate Vidal Mata.[8] The then-Dean of UCLA encouraged both of them to move to Hawaii, due to the difficulty of educated Filipinos to be hired as professionals in California during that time.[6][8] After graduating in 1940 she worked as a tutor and domestic worker for the Dorrance family;[3][5] her husband worked for Boris Karloff.[3] Later that year, they moved to the Philippines,[5] where they sought jobs as teachers.[8] They remained in the Philippines during World War II and returned to the United States afterward with Karloff's assistance.[3]
In 1948, Mata was hired as a teacher by the Stockton Unified School District;[6][8] she became the first Filipino American teacher in California.[3][5] Throughout her career, Mata taught in schools outside of north Stockton, as it was uncommon for minority teachers to teach in schools in north Stockton.[6][8] In 1980, Mata retired, yet continued to substitute teach well into the rest of the decade.[5]
In 2013, Mata died, survived by two children, and twenty one grandchildren and great-grandchildren, one of whom is a kindergarten teacher.[5]
Legacy
editIn late 2019, through the efforts of the Filipino American community, a new elementary school in the Quail Lakes neighborhood of Stockton was named after Mata.[9] The efforts were led by the organization Little Manila Rising, who initially placed her name as an option for the new school.[2][5]
References
edit- ^ "Bruin Women Firsts". Alumni Newsletter. University of California, Los Angeles. March 2019. Retrieved February 8, 2020.
- ^ a b Chang, Irene (December 21, 2019). "New school to be named after California's first Filipina teacher". AsAmNews. Retrieved February 8, 2020.
- ^ a b c d e f Mabasa, Roy (December 22, 2019). "Elementary school in Stockton to be named after first Fil-Am teacher in California". Manila Bulletin. Philippines. Retrieved February 8, 2020.
- ^ a b Mabalon, Dawn Bohulano (June 17, 2013). Little Manila Is in the Heart: The Making of the Filipina/o American Community in Stockton, California. Duke University Press. p. 54. ISBN 978-0-8223-9574-4.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i Medenilla, Klariza (December 28, 2019). "Stockton school to be named after California's first Fil-Am teacher". Asian Journal. Glendale, California. Retrieved February 8, 2020.
- ^ a b c d Gohlke, Mary Jo (March 4, 2014). "Wilhelmina Henry and Flora Mata: Breaking the Color Barrier". Remarkable Women of Stockton. Arcadia Publishing Incorporated. pp. 73–78. ISBN 978-1-62584-947-2.
- ^ Mabalon, Dawn Bohulano (June 17, 2013). Little Manila Is in the Heart: The Making of the Filipina/o American Community in Stockton, California. Duke University Press. pp. 192–200. ISBN 978-0-8223-9574-4.
- ^ a b c d e f Phillips, Roger (September 17, 2013). "Pioneer educator devoted lifetime to SUSD". Record. Stockton, California. Retrieved February 8, 2020.
- ^ Ibanga, Jasper Adrian (January 7, 2020). "New Stockton school to be named after first Fil-Am teacher in California". Filipino Times. United Arab Emirates. Retrieved February 8, 2020.