My guest this week does it all! Museum educator, academic researcher and museum boss lady. Veronica Alvarez, Director of School and Educator Programs at LACMA, discusses how her career has been shaped by her experiences as an immigrant, as a student and as a museum educator. We discuss how she keeps up with her teaching practice even as administrative obligations claim a lot of her time, how to be responsive and caring as a leader, the low salary crisis of museum education, and how she sees diversity as a frame of mind. This episode of Cultura Conscious is the first in a series featuring women of color in leadership roles. 

Veronica Alvarez is an educator, historian, and arts advocate. She has worked with elementary, high school, and college students, teaching subjects such as Spanish and ancient Greek and Roman history. Currently, she is the Director of School and Teacher Programs at LACMA. Prior to LACMA, she worked in the Education Department at the Getty Center for over 16 years, mostly writing curricula, creating professional development opportunities for teachers, and overseeing the teaching staff. Veronica currently serves on the American Alliance of Museum’s EdCom Board and is on the Policy Council for the California Alliance for Arts Education. She is a doctoral candidate at LMU’s Educational Leadership for Social Justice Program. Her dissertation is titled: Art Museums and Latino English Learners: Teaching Artists in the K-12 Classroom.