Derric serves as a member of the senior administrative team at The Crossroads School for Arts and Sciences and is the founding director of Crossroads’ Equity and Justice Institute, which oversees social justice advocacy and equity education on campus.
Prior to this position, Derric was senior deputy, public safety and justice, for the office of Los Angeles County Board Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas. During his tenure, Derric’s numerous legislative achievements include: establishing the Civilian Oversight Commission of the Sheriff’s Department to increase transparency and policing accountability and to decrease officer-involved shootings; leading the efforts to reform the largest probation department in the United States; advancing policy initiatives to improve deficiencies in cultural competency and systemic implicit biases; instituting the Fair Chance Ordinance for LA County that would eliminate restrictions on employment opportunities based solely on criminal convictions; and attaining a $30 million increase in state allocations for court-appointed dependency counsel to improve protections for foster youth in California. He also procured $5 million from the state’s Juvenile Justice and Crime Prevention funds to support restorative justice and community-based programs to divert youth from the juvenile justice system.
Derric was appointed by the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors to represent the Second District as a Commissioner for the Los Angeles County Human Relations Commission, where he was recently elected Vice President. In addition, he serves as a board member for Brilliant Corners, a housing nonprofit for individuals with developmental disabilities and other special needs, and was recently appointed to the alumni board of his alma mater, Pitzer College.
While attending Pitzer, Derric earned his bachelor’s degree. He completed a master’s in business management from Azusa Pacific University and after selection as a National Urban Fellow, he earned his secondary master’s in public administration from Baruch College-City University of New York.