AFSC Arizona is thrilled to announce Emily Verdugo has joined the Tucson team!

An Arizona native, Emily grew up in Pinal County, the epicenter of prison privatization in Arizona. She first met AFSC staff when she spoke out against a proposed private prison in Coolidge, Arizona. Emily served as City Council member for the City of Coolidge and has served on various boards and committees, including the Governor’s Commission on Service and Volunteerism and the Arizona Community Action Association.

Currently, Emily sits as Vice-Chair of the Arizona Democratic Party and Chairwoman of the Arizona Democratic Latino Caucus. Emily was hired as Outreach Director for the Pima County Democratic Party two years ago, and ran a successful 2013 City Council Coordinated campaign and a successful 2014 Latino Get Out The Vote effort. Emily has also been integral in the success of several political campaigns through her political consulting firm. Honored as one of Chicanos Por La Causa’s 40 Hispanic Leaders Under 40, and one of the Top 20 Latino Democrats to Watch by the Houston Chronicle, she is fully bilingual and active in numerous coalitions statewide.

Emily is also very engaged in the education of her sons Court and Jackson. She serves on their school’s PTO and volunteers at every event. Emily holds concurrent degrees in Political Science and History with an emphasis in Latin American Studies from Arizona State University and a master’s degree in Administration with an emphasis in Government/Public Policy.

At AFSC Arizona, Emily has already begun laying the groundwork for a campaign against the treatment industrial complex and the prison industry behind it, both here in Arizona and across the country.