White House Names San Antonio Latina to Key Post
Special to News Taco by Ginger Hall Carnes.
President Barack Obama has nominated the President of Palo Alto College, in San Antonio, Texas, to the National Security Education Board.
Dr. Ana Margarita “Cha” Guzmán was nominated to the panel that will develop criteria for scholarships and grants for students who express an interest in national security issues or pursuing a career in a national security position. They will recommend to the Secretary of Defense which countries and academic disciplines need to be emphasized, including foreign languages and cultures that need to be taught in United States educational institutions.
“I am very honored to be nominated by President Obama to this commission, which is very important to the security and education of our country,” Guzmán said. The appointment must be confirmed by the U.S. Senate.
The National Security Education Board is chaired by the Secretary of Defense. Other members are the Secretaries of Education, State and Commerce; the Director of Central Intelligence; the Chairperson of the National Endowment for the Humanities; and six individuals appointed by the President who are “experts in the fields of international, language, area, and counterproliferation studies education.
Guzmán became the first woman president of Palo Alto College in 2001. A native of Cuba, she has been in educational administration for more than 30 years and is a leading voice for Hispanic Americans in education. Guzman served as a Senior Advisor to Education Secretary Richard Riley during the last year of the Clinton administration.
Guzmán also served as the chair of President Clinton’s White House Commission on Educational Excellence for Hispanic Americans from 1993 to 2000 and was responsible for the development of Our Nation on the Fault Line: Hispanic American Education.
She began her career as a public school teacher, has served as an Associate Vice Chancellor of the Texas A&M University System, and as Executive Vice President for Institutional Advancement, Administration and Community Relations at Austin Community College. She also has been President of the Texas Association of Chicanos in Higher Education.
Guzmán holds an Ed.D. in Education from the University of Houston, an M.A. in Sociology from Texas Southern University in Houston, and a B.S. in Education from Stout State University in Wisconsin.
