Nancy Navarro
Member of the Montgomery County Council
from the 4th district
In office
2009 – December 5, 2022
Preceded byDonald Praisner
Succeeded byKate Stewart
Personal details
Born (1965-08-15) August 15, 1965
Caracas, Venezuela
Political partyDemocratic
EducationUniversity of Missouri (BS)

Nancy Navarro (born August 15, 1965) is a Venezuelan-American politician and the first Latina county council member in Montgomery County, Maryland.[1] She served on the county council from 2009 to 2022, representing District 4, the largest and most diverse district in the county.[2]

Navarro was appointed to the President’s Commission on Educational Excellence for Hispanics by President Barack Obama in 2011.[2]

Navarro received international attention in March 2021 when two technicians were heard laughing at her accent during a virtual council meeting while she was speaking about inequitable distribution of the COVID-19 vaccination.[3][4][5][6]

Early life and education

Navarro was born in Caracas, Venezuela.[2] She graduated from University of Missouri-Columbia with a Bachelor's of Science in Psychology.[2]

Career

Before running for public office, Navarro was an educator in the Montgomery County Public School System. She was elected to the Montgomery County Board of Education in 2004.[1] She served five years on the Board of Education and held the offices of both President and Vice-President. During her time on the school board, Navarro co-founded Centro Familia, a nonprofit organization whose mission is to assist the economic and educational development of Latino and other immigrant communities.[7]

Navarro was elected to Maryland's Montgomery County County council in a May 2009 special election. She is a self-proclaimed progressive Democrat who has championed legislation to increase racial equity, provide resources to Latinos striving for higher education and increase economic development.[2]

In October 2011, President Barack Obama appointed Navarro as a member of the President’s Commission on Educational Excellence for Hispanics, where she served on the Early Childhood Education Committee.[2]

In 2018, she was president of the Montgomery County Council.[8] In 2020, she opposed ballot questions B and D.[9]

In 2022, Rushern Baker chose Navarro as his running mate in the Democratic primary of the 2022 Maryland gubernatorial election.[10]

Personal life

Navarro resides in Silver Spring, Maryland with her husband, Reginald, and their two daughters, Anais and Isabel.[1]

Awards and accolades

In 2007, Navarro was awarded the Hispanic Hero Award by the U.S. Hispanic Youth Entrepreneur Education.[7] She is also a 2009 recipient of the Heart of the Community Award from the Community Teachers Institute.[11][12] Additionally, she has received the Maryland State Department of Education "Women Who Dare" Leadership Award, and the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce of Montgomery County Leadership Award.[13] In 2020, she was inducted into the County Women's History Archives.[14][15] In 2021, Navarro was elected as a fellow of the National Academy of Public Administration.[16]

References

  1. 1 2 3 "About Nancy Navarro - Councilmember, District 4". Montgomery County, Maryland. Retrieved 2021-03-29.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "About Nancy". Councilwoman Nancy Navarro. Retrieved 2021-03-29.
  3. ↑ Iyer, Kaanita (2021-03-05). "Latina councilmember mocked for accent while discussing racial disparities in Maryland". USA Today. Retrieved 2021-03-29.
  4. ↑ "Latina Councilmember Is 'Absolutely Proud' of Her Accent After Zoom Attendees Mock Her Pronunciation". PEOPLE.com. Retrieved 2021-04-01.
  5. ↑ Harmeet Kaur (4 March 2021). "A Latina councilmember's discussion on Zoom about racial disparities was interrupted by people laughing about her accent". CNN. Retrieved 2021-04-01.
  6. ↑ "Latina lawmaker's accent mocked in hot mic moment while delivering speech on racism". The Independent. 2021-03-08. Archived from the original on 2022-06-18. Retrieved 2021-04-01.
  7. 1 2 "Nancy Navarro To Receive Hispanic Hero Award". Montgomery County Public Schools. 2007-05-04. Retrieved 2021-03-29.
  8. ↑ Barrios, Jennifer. "Nancy Navarro elected president of Montgomery County Council". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved 2021-04-01.
  9. ↑ Kazanjian, Glynis (2020-09-10). "Coalition of Heavyweight Insiders Launches Opposition to Montgomery County Ballot Measures". Maryland Matters. Retrieved 2021-04-01.
  10. ↑ DePuyt, Bruce (October 12, 2021). "Rushern Baker Taps Nancy Navarro, Montgomery Councilmember, as Running Mate". Maryland Matters. Retrieved October 13, 2021.
  11. ↑ "Board of Education Member Navarro Receives Leadership Award". Montgomery County Public Schools. 2009-02-09. Retrieved 2021-03-29.
  12. ↑ Sprehn-Malagónm, Maria; Hernandez-Fujigaki, Jorge; Robinson, Linda (2014-07-21). Latinos in the Washington Metro Area. Arcadia Publishing. ISBN 978-1-4396-4630-4.
  13. ↑ "Nancy Navarro". Empower Montgomery. Retrieved 2021-03-29.
  14. ↑ "Nancy Navarro To Be Inducted Into County Women's History Archives". Rockville, MD Patch. 2020-01-22. Retrieved 2021-04-01.
  15. ↑ Shahzad, Maryam (2020-01-23). "Commission for Women to Induct Nancy Navarro into Women's History Archive". Montgomery Community Media. Retrieved 2021-04-01.
  16. ↑ Incorporated, Prime. "National Academy of Public Administration". National Academy of Public Administration. Retrieved 2023-04-21.
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