Belinda Hernandez-Arriaga

Belinda Hernandez-Arriaga is the Founder and Executive Director of Ayudando Latinos A Soñar (ALAS) in Half Moon Bay, California. She is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker registered with the California Board of Behavioral Sciences, and an Assistant Professor in the Counseling Psychology program at the University of San Francisco. Her work focuses on mental health within the Latino community, understanding trauma in immigrant children and families, and supporting farmworker mental health.

Her research examines cultural interventions to address trauma and mental health and she has launched community mental health initiatives at ALAS. Hernandez-Arriaga was inducted into the San Mateo County Women’s Hall of Fame and appointed as the San Mateo County District 3 Arts Commissioner. She is the author of the children's book Love and Monsters in Sofia’s Life, and has been a longtime member of the Bay Area Border Relief.

                                                                 –––

Listen to a story Belinda Hernandez-Arriaga and Nancy Ewen Wang told about their research project, El Encuentro, in April 2025 as part of Testing Ground Live! Social Science on Stage, a storytelling show produced by Stanford Impact Labs and The Story Collider.