Graciela Guzmán

Graciela Guzmán graduated from Grinnell College in 2011 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in anthropology. Guzmán was a Posse Scholar and deeply involved in a wide array of extracurricular activities, including the Organization of Latinos/as, Concerned Black Students, Multicultural Leadership Council, Grinnell Singers, and Queer People of Color. She currently serves as the director of policy and advocacy at Aunt Martha’s Health & Wellness, a nonprofit organization serving over 105,000 children and adults in more than 600 Illinois communities. The organization provides primary and family health care, including behavioral health, pediatrics, family planning, parent support, and women’s health. She previously served as campaign director for the Healthy Illinois Campaign, a statewide coalition committed to fighting for health care for all people in Illinois, regardless of their immigration status.

Guzmán’s passion for health care, community, and helping others grew out of her family’s experiences immigrating to the United States from El Salvador to escape the Salvadoran Civil War and their experiences navigating services as a multi-immigration status family on public benefits. Guzmán’s interest in health care for all, immigration, racial equity, and an overall vision of a better Illinois for disenfranchised communities has led her to participate on the boards of the Chicago Women’s March, New Leaders Council Chicago, Health and Medicine Research Policy Group, and ACA Consumer Advocacy.

Guzmán was active in many organizations, clubs, and events while a student at Grinnell; upon graduation, she continued to serve the College as a member of the Alumni Council, her Reunion Committee, as an admission volunteer, and as a member of the Multicultural Alumni Reunion Committee. Guzmán received the Pioneer Alumni Award in 2017, which recognizes and celebrates noteworthy young alumni for their achievements within 10 years of their graduation.