Marisa B. Perez-Diaz was elected to the Texas District 3 State Board of Education member in November 2012 and took office on Jan. 1, 2013. She is a product of the Texas public school system and is a passionate advocate for equitable education for all students. She has been a key advocate in creating balanced and inclusive policy aimed at increasing and expanding student outcomes. She represents 14 counties across South Texas, including 90+ school districts. When Marisa Perez-Diaz M.Ed. ’16 was sworn into office as Texas’ State Board of Education District 3 member in 2013, she knew the goal for her new role was to build an equitable education for all students. And it’s something she’s been working toward ever since taking her seat on the board, which she won against the incumbent with 67% of the vote. Perez-Diaz’s passion for child advocacy began when she worked as a social worker for the state Department of Family and Protective Services. “I had some interesting experiences when I was with CPS and working in schools,” Perez-Diaz said. “I remember one time I was moved to anger at an experience that I had in a school, and it made me realize that I needed a bigger platform.” Marisa has served as a senior school district administrator in various public education institutions where she has held several critical posts to include chief architect behind family and community engagement strategies, school district legislative priorities, youth voice advocacy and community building. After taking office Perez-Diaz felt if she was going to serve to her fullest, she needed to embrace what it means to be in education and to understand what teachers and administrators go through. Perez-Diaz started the in Educational Leadership and Policy Studies graduate program at UTSA under Encarnacion Garza. “After going through my grad program my mindset shifted about how to approach the work,” Perez-Diaz said. “We need to humanize education. It can’t be about the numbers and the scores on a test. Before we efficiently and effectively educate a student we have to know our kids. We have to know what their experiences are and what they’re dealing with. That was the real driver for me.” In her eight years on the State Board of Education Perez-Diaz has had the opportunity to play a role in making a positive impact on the field of education. In 2018 she helped spearhead the passing of a Mexican American studies course with District 2 board member Ruben Cortez.