Olga M. Escamilla has worked in adult education since 1994. She began her career in adult education as a teacher’s aide and progressively moved to GED® instructor, ABE supervisor, and in 2004 she served as the administrator of the South Central GREAT (Getting Results Educating Adults in Texas) Center for professional development. She provided coordination of regional and state-wide professional development in adult education for 10 years. She engaged in extensive collaboration with internal and external partners in the development and delivery of research-based professional development activities. As a coordinator of the professional development grant, and based on her gained knowledge though prior classroom experience, she knew that assisting individuals with varying backgrounds, experiences, and learning difficulties was very important. Since January of 2010, Olga has been serving as a senior lecturer for the Department of Educational Leadership and Counseling at Texas A&M University-Kingsville. Dr. Escamilla has served as professional development specialist at Texas A&M University-College Station since 2016.

From 2004-2005 Olga served as a chairperson on the COABE/TALAE conference committee and again collaborated to coordinate the COABE/TALAE conference in 2015-2016. These conferences were a huge success and allowed Texas adult educators to experience national and international professional development. In January of 2013 she was appointed to the Alamo Workforce Board as Literacy Representative and served as the chair of the planning committee. She served a two-year term on the board, which ended in December of 2014. She is currently serving as At-Large Regional Representative of the Texas Association for Literacy and Adult Education (TALAE). She began her affiliation with TALAE as the South Central Regional Representative on the TALAE Board. From that role she advanced sequentially through the positions of Vice President, President-Elect, President, and Past-President of TALAE.

For over 25 years, Dr. Olga Escamilla has been in adult education and has made outstanding contributions to the field of adult education in Texas. Her vast experience in workforce development, and as faculty at the university level, allows her to clearly understand a student’s goals and needs in the workforce and postsecondary arenas. She promotes lifelong learning and is a strong advocate for adult education and literacy programs. She has demonstrated outstanding leadership qualities at the local, state, and national levels by actively participating in the state association of Texas (TALAE) and COABE. She has presented various workshops and conference presentations and has been awarded the Texas A&M University System Student Recognition Award for Teaching Excellence. She is highly respected by the field and is known as a person of action. Olga is truly a role model as she has been involved in teaching, coordinating professional development, and administrative duties throughout her career. Her leadership as state association president, in professional development, and in workforce training will allow her to continue serving the adult education community.