Aleks Zavaleta's childhood wasn't easy, and she's the first to tell you that by adolescence she was far from heading down a straight and narrow path. However, her sisters encouraged her to start attending a variety of art classes in her neighborhood put on by Loco Bloco, an organization in San Francisco that provides low-income, minority and immigrant families access to professional level arts education at no cost. Even though she doesn't have a high school degree, she worked her way up in the youth services community, and currently thrives as the Executive Director for Loco Bloco.