Maria Garcia Papers

Collection

Identifier: MS-0441

Staff Only

Scope and Contents

The Maria Garcia Papers (1968-1997) document the establishment of the Chicano Federation of San Diego County and Garcia's work in education. Of particular interest are early Chicano Federation records, including Federation newsletters and documents relating to the Federation's Leadership Training Program. In addition, the collection contains an extensive collection of Chicano newspapers and newsletters dating from 1968 to 1977, including La Verdad and La Voz del Pueblo. Filed alphabetically, the collection consists of correspondence, meeting minutes, conference papers, newsletters, and newspapers. The majority of materials date from 1968 to 1980.

Dates

Creation: 1968-1997
Creation: Majority of material found in 1968-1979

Creator

Garcia, Maria (Person)

Conditions Governing Access

This collection is open for research.

Conditions Governing Use

The copyright interests in some or all of these materials have not been transferred to San Diego State University. Copyright resides with the creator(s) of materials contained in the collection or their heirs. The nature of archival collections is such that multiple creators are often applicable and copyright status may be difficult or even impossible to determine. In any case, the user must assume full responsibility for any use of the materials, including but not limited to, obtaining publication rights and copyright infringement. When requesting images from Special Collections & University Archives for publication, we require a signed agreement waiving San Diego State University of any liability in the event of a copyright violation.

Biographical Note

Born and raised in San Diego, Maria Garcia received her Bachelor of Arts and Master of Arts from San Diego State University in 1972. She also obtained a teaching certificate from Point Loma Nazarene College. Garcia initially worked as an elementary school teacher, but eventually became principal at Baker, Audabon, and Bandini Elementary Schools. While at Baker Elementary, Garcia implemented a successful mentor program for at-risk students, and helped to establish a language-arts magnet program with an emphasis on computers.

During the 1970s, Garcia actively lobbied for bilingual educational programs, attending many conferences focused on bilingual education and Mexican-American education. In addition, Garcia was an active member of the Chicano Federation of San Diego County, which provides services to Latino families. She also sat on several advisory boards related to Chicano/as issues and education, such as the Minority Advisory Council and the Mexican-American Education Project.