Provocative Perspectives
Dr. Paz Maya Olivérez - January 28, 2010
Dr. Paz Maya Olivérez is the Executive Director and Founder of Futuros Educational Services, a non-profit organization that provides college-preparatory services to low-income and immigrant youth and professional development for school- and college-based professionals. She is also an Adjunct Assistant Professor of Clinical Education in the Masters in Teaching Program in the Rossier School of Education at the University of Southern California. As a consultant to Building Engineering & Science Talent (BEST), she currently conducts research and program evaluation in schools in the Los Angeles Unified School District. Dr. Olivérez has also held positions as a Program Analyst for the Educational Policy Unit of the Los Angeles Unified School District Board of Education where she did research related to educational equity for urban Latino and African American students and as a Research Assistant for the Center for Higher Education Policy Analysis at U.S.C. where she investigated issues of college access for low-income first-generation college-goers.
Her dissertation titled Ready But Restricted: An Examination of the Challenges of College Access and Financial Aid for Undocumented Students in the U.S. examined the challenges encountered by college-ready undocumented high school seniors as they endeavor to make the transition from high school to college. Along with a statewide coalition of undocumented students and advocates, she was instrumental in developing The College and Financial Aid Guide for: AB540 Undocumented Immigrant Students, which has been disseminated to thousands of undocumented students and advocates throughout California. She holds a Ph.D. in Educational Policy from the University of Southern California and a B.A. in Sociology from the University of California, Santa Cruz.
