Dr.
Veronica C. Garcia, Superintendent of Santa Fe Public Schools, has
extensive experience working in the policy arena in various capacities,
including serving as Executive Director for NM Voices for Children,
Executive Director of the New Mexico Coalition of School Administrators,
and New Mexico’s first Cabinet Secretary of Education. As Cabinet
Secretary of Education, she advocated for the passage of many
educational reforms including the state’s Pre-K Act, Hispanic Education
Act, programs that extend the school year for at-risk children (K-3
Plus), and rigorous academic standards that were recognized nationally.
She also pushed for a comprehensive approach to educational reform by
advocating for increased funding for programs such as school-based
health clinics, breakfast in the schools, and elementary physical
education. Under her leadership, New Mexico garnered top rankings for
school reform, accountability systems, increased teacher quality, data
quality, health and wellness policies, parental involvement, and college
and career readiness.
Prior
to becoming the interim superintendent of Santa Fe Public Schools, Dr.
Garcia served as the Executive Director of New Mexico Voices for
Children, a state children’s advocacy organization that champions
policies meant to improve child well-being in the areas of education,
health, family economic security, and racial and ethnic equity. During
her time as executive director of NM Voices for Children, she fully
integrated the organization’s two major work areas—the KIDS COUNT
program and the Fiscal Policy Project—which resulted in the creation of
the NM KIDS are COUNTing on Us
policy campaign, a blueprint for improving child well-being. Her
decades of work within the state’s K-12 education system have also
included teaching in the classroom, serving as principal and regional
superintendent in the Albuquerque Public Schools, and serving as
associate superintendent and superintendent of the Santa Fe Public
Schools. As the Superintendent of Santa Fe Public Schools from
1999-2002, the District transformed a $2.6 million deficit into a $2.4
million cash balance.
Dr.
Veronica C. Garcia has received numerous awards including: the National
Governor’s Association Award for Excellence in State Government, New
Mexico Superintendent of the Year, New Mexico Coalition of Educational
Leaders Hall of Fame, and the Life Time Achievement Award in Education
from Hispanic Magazine. She is a native Spanish speaker and received her
doctorate in Educational Leadership from the University of New Mexico.
She is a local, national and international keynote speaker having
delivered more than a thousand speeches and addresses in her career. Her
dissertation, “Ethical Relational Leadership: A New Framework for the
Professional Development of Educational Leaders,” has been used by many
in the field. Dr. Garcia has authored a chapter (“Education 2050”) in
the book titled New Mexico 2050, published by the University of New Mexico Press.