Sofia M Vergara Ed.D, Vice Chair

Dr. Sofia Vergara joined the Board of Directors in 2021. Dr. Vergara has been a Spanish teacher at New Roads School for the last 15 years and served as Curriculum Coordinator for the Spanish division of her department. She is an alumnus of the school and decided to go back and work there after graduating from UC Berkeley with a degree in Political Science and minors in both Spanish and Disability Studies. She also earned a Masters degree in Secondary Education  and Doctorate degree in Educational Leadership for Social Justice both from Loyola Marymount University, Los Angeles.

In 2017, Dr. Vergara was asked to join LMU’s School of Education as a lecturer where she has taught undergraduate and graduate courses focusing on disability and multiculturalism in special education, specifically in the areas of educational supports for students with disabilities (FBAs, IEPs 504 plans), IDEA, Universal Design for Learning, and transitional planning. Sofia also served as a member and chair of the Board of Directors of the Westside Regional Center, whose mission it is to empower people with developmental disabilities and their families to choose and access community services. These educational and professional experiences, as well as her passion for advocacy and inclusion of individuals with disabilities, are also the essential driving forces behind why, in 2020, Dr Vergara and a colleague co-founded Bridges to Inclusion, a company that provides training and support to educational institutions, organizations, families, and individuals with disabilities.