Q: How did your family and culture influence who you are today?
Tremendously. I work in CSR and volunteer of my time, talents and treasure with multiple organizations. My father ran a small nonprofit in NM helping migrant farmworkers with health, job training, immigration status, etc. That left a lasting impression on me.
Q: Why is ACEE important to you?
The work ACEE does is seriously important. I remember my two sons going through Marcos de Niza High School and when they were studying economics, I told them it was extremely important to understand how personal economics would be part of their life daily forever. I also offered to help them, reminding them I had an Economics degree. One took me up, one declined more or less nicely. But we speak about it often, and the curricula the school provided, aided by ACEE, helped lay the foundation for that ongoing conversation.
Q: Why do you care about financial and economic education?
Having a grasp of money, finance, and an understanding of the money traps along their life paths is absolutely imperative. For example, the title loan companies (economic bullies) dotting our poorest neighborhoods are not making horrific loans to the financially literate. But it can seem like the only way out to someone who’s worked themselves into a financial hole that ACEE resources could help them avoid.
