Twenty-four years ago, at the age of twelve, María García-Cacique came to this country entrusted to her aunt and uncle as guardians to pursue an education and become a teacher because that was the best way she could make her mark in the world. She started this pursuit as a migrant student in the Santa Maria Areas and after years of work and dedication, part of her goal was reached when she completed by Multiple Subject Teaching Credential at UCSB. Over the past decade, Maria has been teaching in the classroom for seven years, worked with the Migrant Education Program in a variety of positions, and gained knowledge and skills about managing of programs. Through the learning communities in Fielding University, she learned more about the level of service and leadership that students everywhere deserve. As an educational leader, she felt confident about making a commitment to providing educational challenges and opportunities that the current high stakes testing and standards based era requires in order for students to have future success as professionals.

As director in the Migrant Education Program, Maria has been able to serve the community from which she received so much support, but also to learn about the crucial need for collaboration and leadership in educational agencies. Migrant Education is a real testament to what collaboration and team work can accomplish. Yet, the need to work together to meet our common goal: getting all students to meet the standards continues.

It is this collaborative environment in which, in her efforts to serve the students and their families, Maria has come across amazing individuals who, as in her earlier experiences, are encouraging her to become more skilled to make an even greater impact. To this end, she set a new goal for herself, which is to earn an administrative credential. The Fielding University created an awesome learning community for her where she has completed the course work for the Administrative Credential, Tier I and will be submitting her application in the near future.

Being a regional migrant education director is an exciting opportunity to continue to achieve her goal of making a positive mark in the world. Maria is looking forward to the challenge of gaining experts’ knowledge, and practicing proven methods to establish stronger collaborations in schools with district, county, and state personnel to continue to service students and families with integrity and the highest quality of services.

All this could not be possible without the unconditional support of her husband of 15 years, her daughter who started high school at Dos Pueblos High School this year, and her son who is in the 4th grade at Brandon Elementary and all the many friends and extended family that have helped Maria stay on the learning path all these years.