Maria C. Garza

Maria C. Garza is the Chief Executive Officer at East Coast Migrant Head Start Project (ECMHSP). East Coast Migrant Head Start Project is a non-profit organization that provides high-quality comprehensive Head Start services to farmworker families in 48 centers located in 10 different states.

A former migrant farmworker and a high school dropout, Maria is a strong human rights advocate and a national expert on farmworker issues. She is a fully bilingual motivational speaker. Recently Maria spoke to the Global MBA Program from Spain’s Salamanca University. She hosted a group of leaders from North Africa and the Middle East in conjunction with the Council for International Visitors addressing mutual issues impacting migrant workers. She also visited Israel and met with Jewish and Palestinian leaders to learn more about peace and collaboration efforts in the region and the world. Last month, she established the Women in Power Alliance with more than 30 female CEO’s of the most important nonprofits serving Latinos in the U.S. to promote COVID-19 vaccination efforts. In addition, to kickstart this year’s Hispanic Heritage Month, she launched “Cultivating Minds” a podcast inspired by children, where adults learn from them and from experts about education, psychology, medicine, science, art, and more.