Maria Elena Cruz

Director, LULAC National Education Service Center in Austin, Texas

Dr. Maria Elena Cruz is the Director of the LULAC National Education Service Center (LNESC) in Austin, Texas. She brings a wealth of experience, previously teaching Chicana/o Studies at California State University, Northridge (CSUN) and directing one of the LULAC National Educational Service Centers in Oxnard, CA. At the Oxnard center, Dr. Cruz oversaw programs like TRIO Upward Bound, designed to prepare students for success beyond secondary school, alongside initiatives such as CIDream, CI STEM, and Project Islas.

Dr. Cruz holds a Master of Arts in Experimental Psychology and earned her Doctorate in Education from the University of California, Santa Barbara. Her professional focus revolves around empowering low-income Latino and Indigenous Mexican-American students and their families to navigate the transition from high school to higher education. She has co-authored peer-reviewed articles on Latina sexual and reproductive health as well as Latinx/Chicanx teacher preparation.

Beyond her educational roles, Dr. Cruz has a robust history with LULAC, serving as the past LULAC National Education Chair and Deputy State Director of California LULAC. She has been an active member of LULAC since her youth in Texas.