This article was republished with permission from WTOP’s news partner InsideNoVa.com. Sign up for InsideNoVa.com’s free email subscription today.
This article was written by WTOP’s news partner InsideNoVa.com and republished with permission. Sign up for InsideNoVa.com’s free email subscription today.
Prince William supervisors recently hired Maria Burgos as the county’s new Equity and Inclusion Officer.
Burgos was the Supervisor of Global Learning and Culturally Responsive Instruction with Prince William County Public Schools Office of Professional Development and joined county government effective Monday.
Burgos has a master’s degree in Educational Leadership from George Mason University and a bachelor’s degree in Early Childhood K/6 from Fayetteville State University.
Burgos is a county resident and has deep ties in the community. She has received a 2017 Human Rights Award from the Prince William Human Rights Commission for her contributions to human and civil rights. She’s also been appointed by the Virginia Department of Education to serve on the 2021 Culturally Relevant and Inclusive Education Practices Advisory Committee.
Burgos was named to Governor Northam’s Commission on African American History Education in 2019 to make recommendations for improving student experience and instructional support for teachers. She also created the division’s Educational Equity Framework to yield greater inclusivity and responsiveness to claims of racism, and the diversity of students, staff and community.
Burgos was selected as the top-ranked candidate after a national recruitment process. Forty-three applications were received from 14 states as part of the recruitment effort for the Equity and Inclusion Officer position.
The applications were pared down to the top 14 from which five candidates were invited to participate in a first round of WebEx interviews on Jan. 20. The interview panel included Michelle Casciato, deputy county executive; Raul Torres, Human Rights director; Bernadette Peele, County Attorney’s Office, and police Capt. Joe Robinson.
The three top candidates participated in a second WebEx interview on Jan. 28, with the deputy county executives, Raul Torres, and Karla Bruce, the chief equity officer in Fairfax County. Prince William County Executive Chris Martino met with the top two candidates on Feb. 3. Burgos distinguished herself throughout the recruitment process, the county said in a news release.
