The Chair of the Board of Commissioners for the San Antonio Housing Authority, Dr. "Cha" Guzman brings a wealth of experiences and leadership skills to her role. Dr Guzmán has helped multiple colleges reach their goals as its President, including Palo Alto College (PAC) in San Antonio. She has the distinction of being the first woman president and longest serving President (PAC). During her tenure, she increased enrollment, retention rates, and continuing education revenues. Under her leadership, PAC garnered millions of dollars in federal and state grants and was chosen to establish the first recovery high school in the State of Texas by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. Under her leadership Palo Alto College became the economic engine of the South Side of San Antonio.
In addition, 12 new occupational technical programs were added to the college's degree and certificate programs, giving PAC the edge as the primary workforce trainer for Toyota, its suppliers and the South Side.
A native of Cuba, Dr. Ana Guzman has been in educational administration for more than 30 years and is a leading voice for Hispanic Americans in education. She served as a Senior Advisor to Education Secretary Richard Riley during the last year of the Clinton administration. While at the Education Department, Dr. Ana Guzman identified advances in promoting access in education for the Hispanic community and worked with senior officers and program directors to ensure that all results impacting the Hispanic community were recognized. She was influential in creating a new vision for the role of technical education in maintaining the competitive viability of this country's workforce, and in identifying the opportunities to make adult education more responsive to the Hispanic community. Dr. Guzman also served as the chair of President Clinton's White House Commission on Educational Excellence for Hispanic American from 1993 to 2000.
Dr. Ana Guzman's breadth of experience in education spans from service as a public-school teacher to serving as Vice Chancellor of the Texas A&M System. She has been President of the Texas Association of Chicanos in Higher Education and is currently a Board of Trustee on The College Board. Giving back to the community has always been the focus of Dr. Ana Guzman's career in education.