In the first part of my interview with Drea Elzy, we talk about making moves from the West Coast to the Midwest as an educator in K-12 and higher education roles. Drea wears multiple hats today and elaborates on her work disrupting education environments to address the opportunity gap in Chicago. She expands on her philosophy of “intentional autonomy” and how she enacts it and her work. Drea is very reflective and very articulate, so listen closely for a case study regarding implementation of complex initiatives and finding balance, harmony, and radical self-care. We mention our higher education grad program, which we refer to us PASA, which is the postsecondary administration and student affairs at the University of Southern California, as well as Dr. Shafiqa Ahmadi, one of the influential faculty in our program.
About Drea:
Originally from Los Angeles California, Drea now works in a unique blended space which touches K-12, higher ed, and policy in the City of Chicago.
Show Highlights:
- Drea tells us more about herself as a first generation Latina college student 05:41
- Hear more about Drea’s current work and her transition from the West Coast to the Midwest 08:06
- Drea shares about her professional pathway shaping her work today 30:51
- Learn more about where Drea is finding community right now 39:24
Notable Quotes:
- [In reference to moving from the West Coast to the Midwest] “Coming out and making that step into a completely new ecosystem, which has so many varying complexities, was a very unique challenge not having a personal or professional home.” 08:30
- “‘What’s the essence of Chicago when it comes to education when we think about what students are experiencing outside of what we see on the news?’ Getting beyond that was a challenge for me professionally.” 11:08
- “I call it intentional autonomy. I want to operate with purpose on purpose consistently in the way I’m communicating and the way I’m rolling anything out. ” 20:08
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