On June 17, 2025, the Palm Springs, California City Council held an appreciation dinner and special meeting at the Palm Springs Convention Center that recognized the work of Palm Springs commissions and boards. The event also featured commissions’ milestone achievement reports. Bobby Rimas, a Fil-Am Associate Professor at California State University, Los Angeles, was in attendance at the appreciation dinner and special meeting since he serves as a Commissioner for the Palm Springs Human Rights Commission. Rimas indicated that “the recognition from the Palm Springs City Council is a great honor. I am proud to serve on a commission whose overall mission is to ‘…promote and protect the diversity of our community and to improve human relations through education and community awareness.’ This recognition serves as my reminder of the ongoing fight for human rights and the importance of dignity and equity for all.” Rimas has served on the Palm Springs Human Rights Commission since October 2023 after he was appointed by the Palm Springs City Council to the commission in September 2023. Rimas was born in Palm Springs, California and has family who has lived in the Palm Springs area for decades.
The Palm Springs Human Rights Commission recommends equity initiatives to the City Council and engages the community through education, partnerships, and advocacy. The commission also monitors human rights conditions and reports findings semi-annually to the City Council.
In addition to serving as an Associate Professor, Rimas works as a Paralegal at the Larson LLP law firm. He also serves as Co-Chair for the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) Lambda Alumni Association, and serves as Vice President of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion for the Stonewall Democratic Club.
He is past Chair of the UCLA Pilipino Alumni Association and a former President of the Los Angeles Paralegal Association. Rimas graduated with a bachelor’s degree in history from UCLA, a master’s degree in legal studies, cum laude, with a concentration in compliance and legal risk management from the University of Arizona James E. Rogers College of Law, and a master’s degree in education with a concentration in diversity, equity and social justice in education from The University of Texas at El Paso.
