Garcia to be honored at the ALAS Gala Dinner Event October 11, 2024 in Portland, Oregon during ALAS’ National Education Summit
The Association of Latino Administrators and Superintendents (ALAS) has named Carlos Garcia as the recipient of its 2024-25 ALAS Lifetime Achievement Award. Garcia was a founding member of ALAS and has also served as the association’s president, among other roles. Garcia will be recognized at a special awards ceremony during the ALAS Gala Dinner Event being held October 11, 2024 at the Portland Marriott Downtown Waterfront. The event takes place on the final day of the ALAS 21st National Education Summit which runs Oct. 9-11, 2024.
“We are honored to recognize one of our founding members with the Lifetime Achievement Award,” said ALAS Executive Director Ulysses Navarrete. “Carlos Garcia’s dedication and leadership in helping historically marginalized students, namely Latinos, during his over 40-year career is truly an inspiration to all in the field. He demonstrates a “si se puede” attitude in all that he does and is a living example that if we want to see change, we need to get off the bench and into the game.”
Garcia served as a superintendent for 16 years in four distinctive school districts: Sanger USD (CA), Fresno USD (CA), Clark County SD (NV) and San Francisco USD (CA) before retiring in 2012. In 2003, he was a founding member of the national ALAS, as well as the California Association of Latino Superintendents and Administrators (CALSA). He served as an ALAS board member from 2003 to 2006 and as President Elect in 2009, as President from 2010 – 2011, and as Past President from 2012 – 2013.
During his more than 37-year career in education, Garcia built a strong track record for boosting student achievement and narrowing the achievement gap through his work as a teacher, principal, central office administrator and leader in classroom instruction. In addition to his role as superintendent, he taught at Rowland Unified School District (La Puente, CA) and Chaffey Joint Union High School District (Ontario, CA) before going on to serve as a principal for schools in the Pajaro Valley Unified School District (Watsonville, CA) and SFUSD’s Horace Mann Middle School.
Garcia is the recipient of the 2005 Nevada Superintendent of the Year Award and the 2010 Ferd Kiesel Memorial Distinguished Service Award among many other awards and accolades.
Garcia has a passion for serving urban, underserved children. Growing up in a Los Angeles barrio himself, he made this his mission in education and in life. He is a transformational national leader and is a torchbearer for equity and social justice for all students and their communities.
The ALAS awards recognize individuals and organizations for their extraordinary education leadership and advocacy around issues impacting the education of Latino and other historically marginalized students. Other award recipients include Superintendent of the Year Dr. Debra Duardo, Central Office Administrator of the Year Joanne Fimbres, Principal of the Year Carlos Ramirez, Advocacy Award winner Dr. LeAnne Salazar-Montoya, ALAS Student of the Year Dafnee Marquez Padilla and ALAS Affiliate of the Year Arizona ALAS.
The ALAS National Education Summit is the association’s flagship leadership development and networking event for administrators at schools and districts that serve primarily Latino and other historically marginalized youth. The event focuses on addressing challenges in the education system, particularly those impacting Latino students, and provides a forum for participants to engage in meaningful discussions and identify solutions that can be applied throughout the industry. The theme of this year’s Summit is “Embracing Tomorrow, Fostering Culture, Driving Change, and Promoting Collaboration.”
- For more information about the Summit and the Awards Gala, visit https://www.alasedu.org/annual-summit.
- For more information about ALAS, visit www.alasedu.org.
The American Consortium for Equity in Education, publisher of the "Equity & Access" journal, celebrates and connects the educators, associations, community partners and industry leaders who are working to solve problems and create a more equitable environment for historically underserved pre K-12 students throughout the United States.
- American Consortium for Equity in Educationhttps://ace-ed.org/author/admin/
- American Consortium for Equity in Educationhttps://ace-ed.org/author/admin/
- American Consortium for Equity in Educationhttps://ace-ed.org/author/admin/
- American Consortium for Equity in Educationhttps://ace-ed.org/author/admin/
