Rebecca Rodriguez is a passionate and transformative school designer, systems leader and community builder. Over the past decade, she has served as a founding teacher, founding principal and turnaround executive director. In her roles, she has helped launch and develop the needed systems for school success, including academic project-based learning programs, transformative justice disciplinary systems and overall operational health and development.

In her previous role, Rebecca led the development of a human-centered academic and cultural program at a high school in North East Los Angeles. Building and cultivating relationships that helped bring a host of nature-based learning to the school, centring the need to restore the relationship between humans and Mother Earth while reckoning with the impacts of colonization.

Prior to her work with Los Angeles College PrepAcademy, Ms. Rodriguez was the founding Principal of Vox Collegiate, a high-performing charter middle school in South Los Angeles. There she worked with teachers and students to reimagine special education and English language services while securing mental health & wrap-around services for students. She integrated Restorative Justice circle practice, trauma-informed practices and applied educational neuroscience to support student expression and healing in turn advancing academic growth. Before Vox Ms Rodriguez held several leadership positions in the Camino Nuevo Charter School network as a founding history teacher, department chair, literacy lead, grade level lead, senior class advisor, and student government founder.

She is also a New School Creation Fellow with the Center for Love & Justice at High Tech High San Diego. She believes in reconnecting with our indigenous roots and creating spaces where students can connect with self and others, propelling academic learning.

Ms. Rodriguez earned her B.A. in History and Sociology and a Masters in Education with a focus on secondary teaching from CSU Fullerton, Ms. Rodriguez grew up in South East Los Angeles. Her mother is from Sinaloa and her father is from Chicago with roots in Mexico, and she is the baby of five.