Additionally, Shelbys expertise as a leader lies in strategic planning, change management, community building, program development, policy development, and quality improvement. Leading the staffing and recruiting strategy for a range of far reaching education consulting projects in the Southwest region. Other major roles include Frederic from The Pirates of Penzance, and Alidoro from Orontea. I grew up in Fort Bend County, earned a bachelors degree from the University of Houston Main Campus, earned a masters degree from Texas Southern University, and am currently completing my doctoral degree in Education Administration at Texas Southern University. My current vision revolves around building a college-going culture, and it is to create and access opportunities that reinforce growth, strategic decision-making and matriculation for our youth. My name is (Norma) Vanessa Morales and I am in my tenth-year teaching at YES Prep Public Schools. Hope is now in her ninth year in education and has experience at the elementary, middle, and high school levels. Her desire to make sure the most underserved are treated with dignity and respect has pushed her to focus on self-improvement to be able to be the influencing voice for transparent action and meaningful change. Her parents believed she and her sister would have better educational opportunities in this country. She has worked in Massachusetts public higher education for a decade, with a previous tenure at Mount Wachusett Community College, and in corporate HR and compliance roles prior at Fresenius Medical Care, Morgan Stanley and Washington Mutual (now Chase). In 2006, she earned her Masters in Educational Leadership and in 2009 she earned her superintendents certification. Leticia also oversees TNTPs strategy to support local, state, and national policymakers to create real and lasting changes in education. An incoming sixth grader with plenty of love and optimism. Michelle is from Brownsville, Texas and was raised by her grandmother, Amelia. I spent the last 8 years dedicated to STEM and Language education within the KIPP Texas-Houston network. She is currently the District Instructional World Language Coach at Cambridge Public Schools, where she supports teachers and students across the district to engage in positive and productive learning environments. Cynthia Rivas Mendes is a firm advocate who believes in giving a voice to the voiceless focusing on people who have been systemically and personally marginalized. Myrla Feria Teacher at IDEA Public Schools Myrla Feria is a Teacher at IDEA Public Schools based in Weslaco, Texas. Her research and focus are on closing the literacy gap for Latino students and Latino English Language Learners. While searching for a school to enroll her son in, she realized how politicized education was and sought better options than her school district provided. The light she shines is to make sure her community stays connected to the current issues and supports pathways to bridge the gaps of information. However, when Gil opened up to Myrla . After one year living in Pennsylvania, she returned to her home country and graduated from the University of Veracruz where she obtained her B.A. He also servesasa board member foroneTILT. Seeing the amount of work and advocacy that needed to be done, she later enrolled at Boston University, to pursue her Masters of Arts in Leadership, Policy Advocacy for Early Childhood Education. She holds a Masters in Educational Leadership from the University of Houston and is certified as a Texas Principal. Tasha is excited to learn with her LBF peers on how to be an effective agent for change and to put in practice the learnings to elevate and increase retention of Latinx voices in educational leadership roles. She is looking forward to building a legacy of empowerment, love and joy. Aide Batarse immigrated from Mexico to the United States as a teenager a few decades ago. I have worked in Aldine since 1998 where I started at Reece Academy as a Paraprofessional. Ana grew up in Roswell, New Mexico as an undocumented immigrant until she and her mother were naturalized during Anas senior year of high school, allowing her to attend college. Angelas passion for education started the minute she entered a classroom and began serving bilingual students and families in Houston. in Education from Fordham University and a B.A. Lupita felt it was important to focus on this goal so that she may be a resource to others by providing support and solutions. Her desire to make sure the most underserved are treated with dignity and respect has pushed her to focus on self-improvement to be able to be the influencing voice for transparent action and meaningful change. Cecilia is also the proud mother of an energetic and caring son, Ollin, and a fun loving daughter, Sol, with whom she shares her passion for music and laughter. Vivi Oliveira grew up in Sao Paulo, Brazil. Natalie moved out of the classroom and became an administrator at Brays Oaks as a Dean of Students, Natalie is currently leading the Culture Team as the Director of Student Support for the Brays Oaks campus. Tasha brings to the Latino Board Fellowship, years of cumulative experience in project/portfolio management, early literacy development, customer service, and community organizing. The TSC is the longest-running salsa congress in the United States fully produced and owned by a woman. Alicias role in the Office of STEM Engagement at NASA Headquarters is to connect students and educators to the next era of human exploration as NASA works to establish a sustainable presence on the Moon to prepare for missions to Mars. During these years, she discovered her passion for education, advocacy, and service for the minoritized, overlooked, and underserved populations. In her time at YES Prep Public Schools, she has taken on many roles and has been a part of the change in Houston in various capacities; she currently serves as the Director of Program Initiatives in the District Office. Jos joined the Latinos for Education team after working with. Ms. Feria comes from South Texas and works as a leadership coach. Shortly after moving back home to Worcester, she earned her Masters Degree in Organizational Management from Endicott College; while simultaneously working on her Administrators licence through the Urban Principals Development Program with Teachers 21. Leticia de la Vara advises TNTPs executive team on strategy, accountability, innovation, and the implementation of organization-wide initiatives. . X. Ordua, Ed.D. Judith is currently serving teachers and students as a curriculum and instruction specialist. My grandparents, who immigrated to San Jose, California from Michoacan, Mexico, called me Andrs as I was growing up. In 2016, she was appointed ELA Department Chair, and in 2017, she was awarded Corps Member of the Year. Kimberly Gallegos was born and raised in the suburbs of Houston. Dr. Lara has a bachelors degree in Psychology from the University of Maryland University College and a masters in educational administration from Texas State University. Paola is an elected official in Harris County on the Pasadena Independent School District School Board. As a firstgeneration High School Graduate from YES Prep Southeast and College graduate, she is driven about providing opportunities for students who come from the same underserved communities and strongly believes that it takes a village to raise a child, but nothing is impossible when you set your mind to it. Leydi currently works as the Associate Director of Student Information Systems for Rocketship Public Schools where she manages a team across multiple regions for the network. Natalie Garcia was born and raised in Houston, Texas as a first generation American with a Mexican mother, Cuban father, and an Argentina stepfather. She was born and raised in Stockton, California the city that plays a pivotal role in her personal identity. I focus on teaching the whole child through community support, parent workshops, and student involvement throughout the school. After graduating, she started her journey in Teach For America and moved to Houston where she taught elementary and middle school science, served as a teacher leader, and obtained her M.Ed. . Jimmy Aguilar is from East Palo Alto, CA. I then attended Sam Houston State University and received my Masters Degree in Educational Administration. After eight years in that position Italia took the opportunity to open the Literacy department in Aldine ISD and be part of developing and growing educators to deliver effective education, and ensures they can adapt to the changing needs of students and families. Niurka completed her elementary and secondary education in Boston Public Schools. Martha was born and raised in Veracruz, Mexico. In her free time, Luzdivina enjoys reading and spending quality time with her husband of 21 years, daughters Isabella, a junior at UTRGV, and Delailah, a Senior who will be attending UT Austin in the Fall and her six pugs. Her family originated from Costa Rica and Jamaica. King School where she planned and executed enrichment programs for students K-5 as well as social events for the community. Along with Dr. Daniel Villanueva from the University of Houston-Downtown, Michelle created and hosts Latinx Learners, a podcast which highlights first generation Latinx issues experienced by both students and professionals in higher education. As an immigrant herself, Aide has great hopes to uncover some of the barriers our immigrant families face in order to achieve greater school participation, therefore, creating bridges in our educational system to better support our immigrant population has become one of her most important goals. Born and raised in Barranquilla, Colombia, and residing in Central Massachusetts for 15 years, Maria Isabel is a certified MCAD trainer and presently enrolled in an Executive Leadership Institute program. She has served as school administrator, high school teacher, non profit director, social worker, and union organizer, who, examines and implement services and programs to support in addressing systematic biases and disparities that affect the educational outcomes of Black and Brown students in an effort to effecting organizational change, and collaborating with partners and staff to improve racial and educational equity for youth. Carlos is a financial services professional with experience in different fields such as, operations management, banking, trust operations and non-profit. While a graduate student at UH, she earned a teaching fellowship on campus and volunteered in public schools to experience bilingual education in public schools. She is a California native who has worked extensively with the California state legislature and with the White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for Hispanic Americans. Unfortunately, not every student gets seen like I did and therefore potential remains unleashed. Despite their major differences, the season 13 pair agreed to . Carlabegan her work in the K-16 ecosystem as a substitute teacher, which is when her passion for education as a social justice movementwas sparked. While teaching, Lourdes noticed a need and developed a passion for restructuring discipline frameworks within schools to better support learners struggling with maladaptive behaviors. She graduated from Elkins High School in 2009 and attended Texas A&M University. Cynthia Paris joined Lawrence Public Schools as Superintendent in August 2018, following her nomination by the Lawrence Alliance for Education and appointment by state Commissioner of Elementary and Secondary Education Jeff Riley. Johana Muriel Grajalesserves as the Director ofNational Strategy and Innovationat Latinos for Education. As a proud Venezuelan immigrant, he is passionate about working hard to help Latinos to build a better future for them and their families. There she oversaw finances, personnel and operations for an organization providing academic support to over 5,000 children across Miami-Dade County Public Schools. She is the founder of Castro Concepts, LLC, a boutique, consulting firm providing fractional chief financial services to mission-driven organizations. Good to Great is a learning experience that helps experienced teachers combine high expectations with strong instruction to make grade-level content accessible to all their studentsand see that their students can rise to the challenge. Based in Houston, Liliana is currently leading the nationwide Equipando Padres program, designed to support parents of first generation to college engineering students. Elvira lives in the greater Houston area with her spouse and two children. But, I have now stepped into a place where I can shape that mission and vision and bring student voices to the table. Dakota identifies as Afro-Latina. She has worked in public education since 2000 and has served as a paraprofessional, and classroom teacher. She also enjoys gardening, watching movies and spending time with her family, friends and four dogs. As an adoptive mother, Paola is an advocate for adoption and foster care. Dr. Rojas has earned a Ph.D. in Organizational Development and Change and a Masters in Organization Leadership through the Fielding Graduate University. When she is not advocating for young people, Maria enjoys long hikes with her family and teaching salsa dance classes to family, friends and her community. Holds a Masters in Educational Leadership and in 2009 and attended Texas a M. To others by providing support and solutions angelas passion for education team after working with and received my Degree. 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