S7/E16: Leveraging School, Family, and Community Partnerships for Student Success with Ellevation Scholarship Winner Sirenia Garcia

S7/E16: Leveraging School, Family, and Community Partnerships for Student Success with Ellevation Scholarship Winner Sirenia Garcia

Author: Ellevation Education November 22, 2021 Duration: 27:45

On this special episode of Highest Aspirations, we're sitting down to speak with 2021 Ellevation Scholarship Winner Sirenia Garcia from Deer Park ISD in Texas.

Sirenia was born and raised in Texas and plans on attending the University of St. Thomas in Houston in the fall, where she will be studying Music Education and minoring in psychology. She hopes to become a school counselor or school principal - we love to hear that!

As you'll hear in the episode, Sirenia is very open about the struggles she faced in school as a multilingual learner, as well as the important role that her teachers had in encouraging her to persevere. She shares great advice for current students on staying diligent and motivated despite challenges they might face. We hope you enjoy this episode as much as we did. If you'd like to hear more conversations with scholarship recipients, check out the Scholarship Winners playlist on our Spotify. 

If you have an idea for a topic or guest for a future highest aspirations episode, please feel free to reach out to me at stevens@ellevationeducation.com.

You can find additional resources and episode takeaways on our ELL Community page at ellevationeducation.com/ellcommunity. If you haven’t done so already, we invite you to join our ELL Community while you’re there so you get weekly resources, strategies and tips from that you can use right away.


At the heart of Highest Aspirations are the voices and stories of English Language Learners, a dynamic and fast-growing part of the student population. Created by Ellevation Education, this podcast moves beyond theory to explore the real-world experiences shaping classrooms today. Each episode connects you directly with educators who are in the trenches, students navigating dual languages, and researchers translating data into practical strategies. You’ll also hear from families and community advocates, whose perspectives are crucial yet often overlooked. These conversations collectively tackle a central question: how do we build systems that genuinely allow every student to thrive? Rather than offering simple answers, the series delves into the complexities of policy, instructional practice, and cultural belonging. It’s a space where the vibrant ELL community gathers to discuss both challenges and breakthroughs. Tuning in provides a nuanced look at the evolving landscape of education, emphasizing actionable insights and shared humanity. The Highest Aspirations podcast ultimately serves as a thoughtful forum for anyone invested in creating more equitable and effective learning environments for all.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 100

Highest Aspirations
Podcast Episodes
Season 7 Trailer [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 2:44
Welcome back to Highest Aspirations, an education podcast that focuses on how we can help maximize impact on multilingual learners. If you’d like to join us on the podcast or if you have an idea for a topic or guest, we…

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