April Staff Member of the Month: Creating Protective Environments Coordinator, Ray Garcia!
Meet our amazing Creating Protective Environments Coordinator, Ray (he/they), SPAN’s April staff member of the month! Since joining SPAN in October, Ray has been an invaluable team member who has strengthened our education program and empowered youth in our community. Originally from the Hudson Valley, Ray has always believed in the value of listening to our youth and providing them with the necessary resources to be successful. From math programs to afterschool activities, Ray recognizes the incredible investment needed for positive youth development and safe spaces in our schools. Here at SPAN, we could not be more thankful for Ray’s commitment to uplifting youth voices and stopping violence in our community.
On the Education Team, Ray works both on the ground level of Boulder Valley School District, as well as on the greater statewide level to improve our education systems. To create safe spaces in our community, Ray uses hot spot mapping—data collection through surveys about physical and emotional safety—to generate youth feedback. Ray believes that youth input must be prioritized to build effective violence prevention education and long-term safety for our students. In the future, Ray hopes that holistic violence prevention education will be implemented across the state and youth will have increased opportunities for their voices to be heard.
Thank you, Ray, for connecting with the youth in our community and supporting their growth! We appreciate all you do for SPAN and beyond!