Yolanda Martinez-Pineda (she/her/hers/ella) has been working in the schools for 17+ years. Most of her work has been focused on supporting high school students with career and post-secondary exploration. She previously held positions at El Colegio Charter School and Hennepin Technical College, serving as a licensed school counselor and as an assistant director of admissions. Yolanda is excited to join the Achieve Twin Cities organization as program manager to support the college and career centers in Minneapolis schools.

As a first-generation college graduate and mother of three, she understands the importance of supporting young people in their post-secondary process to work towards systemic change. Yolanda obtained her bachelor’s degree from the University of St. Thomas in 2005 and her master’s in professional school counseling in 2020. She attributes  her achievements to her family, community and passionate educators as she believes that only collectively can we thrive. Her work has always centered youth and learning in formal and informal ways.  She believes that organizations like Achieve have the ability to support students to better understanding themselves in this world and can allows them to reclaim their power and achieve success.

In addition to her professional work, Yolanda is the Co-director of Kalpulli Ketzalcoatlicue, an Aztec dance troupe from south Minneapolis composed of more than 100 intergenerational members.