Minerva Gonzalez

Minerva Gonzalez is set on creating opportunites for Latinas to pursue higher education.
When she was applying to colleges, Minerva was impressed by the support she received from a high school teacher to pursue advanced education. As a result of this support, Minerva graduated with a Bachelor of Arts and a Master of Public Administration.
She decided to give back to other young Latinas to encourage them to pursue educational opportunities.
Minerva joined the North County Latinas Association, which seeks to create a healthy quality of life for all Latinas by empowering Latinas socially and economically through education.
The North County Latinas Association (NCLA) was founded in 1992 in order to bring together Latinas who share common goals. The NCLA provides four main programs: monthly meetings that provide networking opportunities; a scholarship fund for annual granting to high school Latinas; a full day conference for young Latinas and their mothers, focusing on education, careers, leadership and positive motivation; and a mentoring program for young Latinas.
Minerva’s work with NCLA is important because it address the lack of college preparation and opportunity information for students and their parents. Her efforts help increase the number of Latinas learning how to attend college as she has seen the number of NCLA conference attendees grow from 100 to 1,000.
As Minerva shares, “Education access and equity is my passion and the work is never done. There is always more to do. So I will continue to serve my community.”