Raysa S. Rodriguez serves as United Way of New York City’s Associate Vice President for Education and oversees initiatives that span the continuum from early childhood through the K-12 system.  Prior to this position, Raysa served as Senior Advisor on Children’s Issues to the Deputy Mayor for Health and Human Services, Linda Gibbs.  In this capacity, she served as a catalyst for macro-level change, and played an instrumental role in strengthening the City of New York’s Early Care & Education policy agenda.  Ms. Rodriguez also contributed to the design, implementation, and management of Opportunity NYC, a demonstration project of the Mayor’s Center for Economic Opportunity that tests the impact of incentive-based strategies on poverty reduction.

Raysa has also worked in the field of child advocacy at Citizens’ Committee for Children of New York Inc., where she evaluated the conditions of New York City’s children and developed policy solutions based on fieldwork and empirical evidence.  Ms. Rodriguez has also directed special education services for preschoolers with special needs, and taught Kindergarten for three years where she was born and raised, Bronx, NY. 

Raysa holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Human Development and Family Studies from Cornell University and a Masters in Social Work from Columbia University School of Social Work. 

Last updated July 29, 2011.