Director-At-Large Candidate, Mary Muniz-Pellicer

YWCA South Florida, Inc., Senior Director of Human Resources

Why do you want to serve on the FHSA Board of Directors?

I have been working for YWCA South Florida for almost 20 years. For the last 13 years, we have been a delegate agency. My desire to serve on this Head Start association board stems from my deep commitment to its mission of promoting school readiness for young, low-income children and empowering their families. Just like YWCA's main emphasis on eliminating racism and empowering women, I am sharing my personal values and have many skills that can contribute to the organization's goals, and my leadership role at the agency brings me to understand the program and its people.

 What skills and talents would you bring to the FHSA Board of Directors?

I am a certified Human Resources professional. I have been with non-profits for 20 years, and I have brought in, researched, and been involved in most things related to Head Start for over 13 years.  I am passionate about children’s advocacy, but most importantly, I want to be part of the solution when it comes to committed and talented staff in all of our childcare centers, and for creating possible pipelines to bring teaching talent into our program. I also have been on several boards over the years, including President of 2 professional HR related organizations, as well as many other board roles such as VP Advocacy & Legislation, and also Early Childhood Chair for Miami-Dade County Council of PTAs for several years. I have been lucky enough to go to Legislative sessions both in Florida and in US Capitol and speak for our children, and for our rights, and employee/employer concerns.