Florante Peter Ibanez has been involved in community and social activism since his early college years at Cal State Dominguez Hills where he served as the Associated Student Body Community Services Director for Peace & Justice in the late1960’s. He worked at the UCLA Asian American Studies Center in the early 1970’s and with friends co-founded UCLA’s Samahang Pilipino. He returned to school and graduated from UC Irvine in 1977 with his B.A. in Comparative Cultures. He was a co-founder of Kababayan (the UCI Pilipino Student Organization) and also served on the Third World Students Coalition which negotiated with the Administration for the creation of the UCI Cross Cultural Center. While a student he also became a member of the left leaning Union of Democratic Filipinos / Katipunan ng mga Demokratikong Pilipino (KDP) which opposed the Marcos Dictatorship in the Philippines and called for social change in the U.S. After his graduation Florante worked for the UCI EOP/Affirmative Action - Early Outreach Program as an Assistant Director and Coordinator of their Academic Enrichment Program. He later became a union organizer for AFSCME (AFL-CIO) during their University of California statewide organizing drive. His community service continued when he joined the Kayumanggi Lions Club in 1992 and served as their president from 1997-98. He has volunteered for numerous services and charities including Asians for Miracle Marrow Matches (A3M) and is a former board member of the community organizations including, Fil-Am Arts and Search to Involve Pilipino Americans (SIPA). In addition, Florante served for six years as an Environmental Commissioner for the City of Carson. He also participated in the 2001 California AIDSRide, 2003 Hawaii AIDS Paradise Ride and 2004 & 2005 Camp Laurel Aids Ride for Kids, helping them each raise thousands of donation dollars. Florante was recently promoted as the Manager of Library Computer Services for the William M. Rains Library of Loyola Law School where he has worked for the last 14 years. He also presently serves on the Loyola Marymount University Staff Senate and previously served for 4 years on the UC Irvine Alumni Association's Board of Directors. He is currently the Immediate Past President of the Kababayan Alumni Chapter at UCI which he also co-founded in 2001. Last June 2006 Florante completed graduate studies from UCLA under their new Joint MLIS/MA Programs of Information Studies and Asian American Studies. He has been married to Rose Estepa Ibanez, MPA since 1974 (also a UCI, LMU and CSULB Alumni), just a year after they met each other during the 1973 Filipino People’s Far West Convention (FWC) held in San Jose, CA. They have raised two beautiful and intelligent daughters, Gabriela who is a 2002 UCI Graduate with a double BA in Asian American Studies and Social Science and Mikaela who is in her senior year of the Magnet Program at Narbonne High School and who also plans to become a future UCI Anteater.
