Sayda Martinez-Alvarado

Sayda is a policy analyst on the higher education policy team. She works on tracking the increasing legislation across states looking to ban diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts in higher education and supporting Ed Trust’s campus racial climate work.

Prior to joining Ed Trust, Sayda served as the lead advising fellow for Matriculate at Yale, a nonprofit that provides free, virtual college advising to high school students from low-income backgrounds. She also interned at All Our Kin, a nonprofit that advocates for home-based, childcare providers; and at the National Coalition on School Diversity, a nonprofit that advocates for increased school diversity and integration in the K-12 space.

A Virginia native, Sayda earned her bachelor’s in Psychology at Yale University, where she was also an Education Studies Scholar, studying the roles of social belonging and social and cultural capital in student success.

Weakness

Baking! Whether it be making fresh pies or bagels, baking makes me lose track of time for hours at a time.

What’s your favorite thing to do outside of work?

Trying new places to eat! I think exploring the food scenes around you is the best way to familiarize yourself with the area around you.

What drew you to education?

My parents always taught me that education would have the power to transform my life. To them, my receiving of a college education was a fulfillment of their American Dream. I am drawn to education because of its ability to completely change the trajectory of a person’s life. Now, to just change the system so that everyone has equitable access to education’s transformative powers!