Alfredo Aguirre, LCSW, was appointed Mental Health Director for San Diego County in March 2007.

In January 1, 2004, Alfredo Aguirre assumed the position of San Diego County Acting Director of Adult and Older Adult Mental Health Services along with his post of Children’s Mental Health Director.

Since September 1999, Alfredo has led the development of a community based, comprehensive system of care for children and youth and their families.  He has worked closely with partner agencies, including probation, child welfare, special education, family members and private providers to build a system to help youth achieve good outcomes in the home, community and school.

Over the last 5 years, Alfredo has led the effort to transform San Diego County’s Older Adult/Adult Mental Health Services, advancing a bio-psychosocial rehabilitation model based on recovery principles. Included in this effort is to increase capacity to serve individuals with co-occurring disorders, to close disparities for ethnic communities in seeking care, and to establish primary care based mental health services.

Alfredo serves on the California Mental Health Director’s Association (CMHDA) as President –elect slated to assume the presidency in October of 2009.  In addition he serves as the chair of the newly formed Social Justice Advisory Committee and continues to be the Co-Chair of the Ethnic Services Committee.   Most recently, he was appointed to be a member of the Alumni Network Steering Committee for the Child, Adolescent and Family Branch, Center for Mental Health Services under SAMHSA.  He is a past member of the National Advisory Board for University of South Florida’s Research and Training Center for Children’s Mental Heath.

Prior to his position in San Diego, Alfredo was Deputy Director for San Mateo County Mental Health for six years, responsible for the Child and Youth System of Care.    Alfredo has worked in community mental health for the past 30 years as a psychiatric social worker, staff supervisor, clinic manager and system wide manager.

Alfredo has a special interest in cultural competence development in systems and communities.  He authored an article, Community Mental Health Services in a Managed Care Environment: “10 Key Issues in Promoting Cultural Competence”, published in Promoting Cultural Competence in Children’s Mental Health Services (Mario Hernandez and Mareasa R. Issacs, eds.) in 1999.

Alfredo Aguirre received his Masters Degree in Social Welfare in 1978 from University of California at Berkeley.