Monica Martinez

As the Program Director for College Success at the Haas Jr. Fund, Dr. Martinez leads strategies and partnerships for achieving the Fund’s goal of leveling the playing field in higher education and reducing the financial barriers to a college degree in California. As the Director of Strategic Initiatives for the Learning Policy Institute, she led the Reimagine College Success Initiative which allowed her to address college access and success by bridging higher education with innovative k–12 systems.

A first-generation college student with a Ph.D. from New York University, Martinez grew up in a working-class Mexican American family in Lakewood, Colorado. After graduating from Baylor with a BA in sociology and social work, Monica received a Ph.D. in Sociology of Education and Higher Education Administration from NYU’s Steinhardt School of Education. She started her career in higher education administration before joining the staff at KnowledgeWorks Foundation, where she launched an innovative program supporting K-12 schools and school districts to build technology-rich, student-centered learning environments.

Martinez also has worked as an independent consultant to foundations and initiatives focused on K-16 education issues. And, as chief school support officer for the XQ Institute in Oakland, she managed a $150 million portfolio of schools and partners working to transform high school education. She has been appointed by two California governors to the California Commission on Teacher Credentialing; she also was named to the White House Commission on Educational Excellence for Hispanics by President Barack Obama.

She lives in Tiburon, California and enjoys hiking in Marin and along the coast near her home in Sea Ranch.