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I was born as Maria Arroyo Peña on March 6th of 1998 in Mexico City, Mexico. To my parents Salvador Arroyo an architect and Alejandra Peña an Executive Director National Institute of Fine Arts as part of the Fine Arts cabinet of President Vicente Fox.

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My father finished the architecture project of Centro University.  My mother becomes an Art History professor at Centro University in Mexico City. My parents enrolled me in Montessori de la Condesa a Montessori school where I started Kindergarten (casa de los niños). The school system designed by Maria Montessori allows children to learn by play. I explored many different physical materials to help me learn about language, math, science, SEL, etc.
My interests include volcanoes, geysers, dinosaurs, and meteorites.

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I finished my first stage of Early Childhood education at Montessori de la Condesa and started first grade (Taller I) in the second building of the school I was in Ms. Lucielda's classroom with students grades 1st through 3rd as it is designed by the Montessori system. My interests include the center of the earth, fossils, black holes, and a strong fear of erosion.

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My father becomes a partner at TEN arquitectos in Februrary. Felipe Calderon becomes president elect of Mexico on September 7th. I start the fourth grade (Taller II) at Montessori de la Condesa in Ms. Yolanda's classroom with students grades 4th through 6th.  My interests include Judaism, the Holocaust, and the Plaestinian-Israeli conflict.

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I graduate elementary school from Montessori de la Condesa with a graduating class of a total of 18 students. I start first grade of secondary school at a bilingual IB private school called Colegio Ciudad de Mexico. At this stage I had never been in a traditional school setting, which was a tough adjustment socially. My mom is the director of the National Institute of Fine Arts for President Felipe Calderon's Fine Arts cabinet. Mexico struggles with violence as the president's war on drugs progresses and narco states form. My interest include international relations, art as form of political commentary, and drug-trafficking violence.

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Enrique Peña a Nieto becomes President elect of Mexico. The Fine Arts cabinet in Mexico changes, and my mother and I move to Puerto Rico. I begin the 9th grade at Caribbean School in Ponce, Puerto Rico a college prep school meant for Puerto Rican students to go to college in mainland USA. My mom begins her job as Executive Director of Museo de Arte de Ponce. We both struggle to fit in and adjust to life on the island. My interests include Global South development, world literacy, and international relations.

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I join the Rotary Interact Club at my school at become the Public Relations representative. I begin my "Up with Haiti" community service project with our partner school in Matenwa Haiti. We host a carwash at school to raise $500 for new school supplies. My interests include world literacy, educational development and political conflict.

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General Assembly UNIS-UN conference

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I go represent my school at the annual UNIS-UN international conference hosted at the General Assembly in New York. That year's conference was on Media’s Influence: Opinions, Activism, & Outcomes. I get awarded the President’s Volunteer Service Award for over a 100 hours of community service. I finally graduate high school and start my first semester of college at Syracuse University as part of the Discovery Florence program in Florence, Italy. My interests include Art History, socialism, and education inequality.

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I join the Citizenship and Civic Engagement (CCE) dual major program at Syracuse University. This dual major program promotes community development through any sector and industry with an emphasis in non-profit management.
In September 2017 Hurricane Maria hits the island of Puerto leaving incommunicado with my mother for two weeks. I call the Mexican consulate in Puerto Rico to request a wellness check on my mother. I finally get a call from her from a satellite phone two weeks later. She spends 3 months without electricity.

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As part of the  CCE dual major program at Syracuse University, I fundraise $2,500 to build a school in Fatick, Senegal as part of a volunteering opportunity for buildOn an organization dedicated to bring literacy to adults and children around the world. The CCE program awards me a $900 grant for my summer trip to Senegal. I join the community of Fatick for three weeks, and learn how much Serer People love wrestling as a traditional sport.
My interests include educational inequality, community development, and non-profit management.

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I participate in a research program within the CCE department. The project is part of a grant awarded to Syracuse University as part of the Campus Compact Positive Engagement initiative. This project consisted in attempting to understand the Great Law of Peace, a Native American form of government, and applying it to campus life. The project ended in the creation of a written sourcebook for an advanced honors writing class.
My interests include education development and policy, indigenous sovereignty, anarchism, and Noam Chomsky.

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Mother and Daughter at the Women's March in Cuenca Ecuador, January 2019.

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I begin my semester abroad with a month in Cuenca, Ecuador at a higher  education learning center for exchange students. I begin taking Indigenous Literature of the Andes with Dr. Sisa Pacari as my professor. I learned about the many struggles of the indigenous groups of the Andes to keep their culture and literature alive sue to educational colonial practices still in place in Ecuador.  I became involved in the women's march that took place in January protesting against the recent femicide cases around the country.

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In March the semester at Pontificia Universidad Catolica de Chile begin and I take a Diversity and Inclusion in education course with professor Martha Infante.
The university goes on political strike protesting against the laws reminiscent of the Pinochet regime of the 1970's-90's. Many students and faculty members protest for a revision of the country's constitution which was written during the military dictatorship at the time. During the Pinochet regime teachers that had previous socialist party affiliations lost their jobs. As the military regime progressed many teachers and university professors lost their lives, or were tortured; my professor, Mauricio Paredes, being one of these brave educators that stood against the military dictatorship.
I also visit the Atacama desert in April and conquer my lifelong fear of erosion.
My interests include educational development and policy, indigenous literature, Latin America's history of military dictatorships and socialism, and Argentinian rock.

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After suffering a dire humanitarian crisis after Hurricane Maria in 2017, a 600 page chat was leaked between governor of Puerto Rico, Ricky Rosselló and his "junta" proving he had embezzled millions of dollars in government funds and aid infuriating the residents of the island. Puerto Rico's population mobilized to take over the main highway in protest for Rossello to resign his position as governor. Protests lasted for about four days until Rosello finally resigned.

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The COVID-19 pandemic strikes worldwide. I finish my senior year of college online and graduate with a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and Citizenship and Civic Engagement with a minor in Educational Studies. I also accomplish my lifelong dream of moving to the big apple and started my job as a remote associate second grade teacher for Success Academy Charter Schools. I became part of the charter school movement and even though I had my doubts about it, I wanted to experience a charter school system for myself before I jumped to any conclusions on whether these schools help or hinder the public education system.

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I get terminated from my teaching position at Success Academy Charter Schools. My termination sparks as a result of disagreements between my values as a teacher and the values of the school. This increases my distrust for the charter school movement when it comes to school choice. I begin my associate kindergarten teaching position with a community of like-minded educators at LEEP Dual Language Academy in Sunset Park, Brooklyn. LEEP is another charter school however their disciplinary policies and curriculum is significantly different from my previous experience at a large charter school network.

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I get promoted to second grade lead teacher at LEEP Dual Language Academy and begin my master's degree in elementary school teaching at American University to become the best educator I can be. At the same time I begin a lead teacher position when the country is at a dire education crisis in which teacher shortage is the worst it has ever been in the country's history. Many teachers are leaving the profession due to the work load, long hours, and poor salaries.