Dr. Icela Pelayo is a Program Officer at the W.K. Kellogg Foundation working on the foundation's efforts on racial equity and community engagement to support thriving children, working families and equitable communities. She supports local community leaders of multi-sector collaborations implementing Truth, Racial Healing and Transformation efforts. Previously, Icela served in various roles at the New Mexico Public Education Department, including Acting Deputy Cabinet Secretary of Teaching and Learning and Director of Bilingual Multicultural Education. Icela currently serves as a board member of Hispanics in Philanthropy. She earned her PhD from the University of Southern California in K-12 Education Policy, focusing on the intersection of policy, teaching, and learning of emerging multilingual students. She earned an MA in elementary education while working as a public school teacher in Los Angeles, and a BA from University of California, Berkeley. Icela is a first-generation college graduate, bilingual, and daughter of Mexican immigrants.