Nancy Jodaitis
Position: Director of Higher Education
E-mail: nancy@immigrantsrising.org
For almost twenty years, Nancy (she/her) has been working to increase admission and graduation rates for underrepresented students in higher education. In the past decade, Nancy has directed her skills towards building educational pathways for undocumented students throughout California, by working one-on-one with students as well as conducting trainings for students and educators in the Bay Area and throughout California. She has focused on the California Dream Act, scholarships, key challenges that colleges and universities face when supporting undocumented students, and institutional best practices that increase the enrollment and graduation of undocumented students. Nancy has also developed a library of educational materials to help undocumented students in California successfully enroll in CA public colleges and universities, and ensure they receive all of the financial aid for which they are eligible.
After collaborating with Immigrants Rising for many years, Nancy joined the staff full-time In July 2016. Prior to that, Nancy worked at San Francisco State for close to a decade as an AB 540 / Undocumented Student Advisor at San Francisco State University, including being the Advisor to SF State’s undocumented student chapter of Improving Dreams, Equity, Access and Success (IDEAS), a Financial Aid Counselor, and the California Dream Act coordinator. Nancy has also served as a pre-admissions advisor, transfer counselor, and scholarship specialist. Through these varied roles, Nancy has developed a comprehensive understanding of the enrollment process and has a track record of institutional advocacy to increase access for low income, first-generation students.
