Deborah Marie Rodríguez García, MSc MA

Highlights

Short Professional Biography

Deborah Marie Rodríguez García (she/her/ella) is a seasoned program manager and policy analyst with 17 years of experience leading impactful learning outcomes and social development initiatives across the globe. With a Master’s degree in Political and Social Science, she brings deep expertise in social impact leadership, program design, and implementation, particularly within the nonprofit sector. Her work bridges research, policy, and practice — translating data and social research into effective, community-driven programs that address complex systemic challenges.

She specializes in developing comprehensive curricula, managing multi-layered budgets and resources, and fostering collaboration among diverse stakeholders. From designing learning tools like storybooks, radio programs, and virtual training courses to supervising large-scale initiatives and proposal development, she thrives on creating inclusive, resilient systems that maximize impact. Using strength-based approaches, she engages communities, elevates learning quality, and drives meaningful, sustainable change.

Extended Professional Biography

Rodríguez García taught language courses both on-campus and online at Georgia Southern University. Upon completing her graduate program, she joined the Peace Corps as an Education Specialist. Leading projects allowed her to engage with diverse traditions, cultures, and languages. Additionally, she served as an Education for Success consultant and later as a project developer with the USAID-funded Foundation for the Autonomy and the Development of the Atlantic Coast of Nicaragua.

In 2016, Rodríguez García was awarded a fellowship through the U.S. Department of State, focusing on teacher training and national curriculum development. After successfully completing two years under the fellowship, she continued supporting education systems as an education consultant for GIZ, contributing to national curriculum reform and training implementation.

As the education program coordinator and child safeguarding officer for Mission Rabies, a One Health organization addressing the global rabies crisis through systematic eradication techniques, she led a team of 35 international officers on the use of education as a tool to save lives. She created child-friendly resources and teacher-oriented tools for use in school and community settings, using cost-effective design and efficient learning approaches. One of her key achievements was successfully advocating for and developing content for the inclusion of rabies education in a national public primary education curriculum. Rodríguez García transitioned into edtech interventions as the Senior Manager for Sesame Workshop’s Education Programs. In this role, she oversaw the production of high-quality, play-based multimedia and print content across a variety of initiatives, including Play to Learn — an innovative program by Sesame Workshop, BRAC, and the International Rescue Committee made possible through the support of the LEGO Foundation. She served as the programmatic lead for Welcome Sesame, crisis-response initiative addressing displaced and impacted families, and contributed to Teaching Smarter: Teacher Development for Sustainable Recovery During COVID, a teacher professional development program.

Rodríguez García led Sesame Workshop’s Social Impact COVID-19 emergency response, creating educational content for children and caregivers in a wide range of settings. She established the foundational elements for a LEGO Foundation-funded intervention that launched Elmo’s World News, a special television and YouTube broadcast delivering playful learning and emotional support to global audiences. In partnership with UNICEF, she developed a positive parenting initiative designed to support caregivers and families in managing stress during the pandemic.

Most recently, Rodríguez García served as Lead Advisor for Education Programs at Save the Children US. She led educational initiatives and project design to improve equitable access and learning outcomes for children in complex environments. She collaborated closely with fundraising colleagues to guide grant proposals and funding strategies. Additionally, she provided special advisement on Nexus coherence and localization.

Rodríguez García thrives in dynamic, diverse environments where she can elevate local knowledge and build meaningful partnerships with community leaders. At the core of her work is strengthening education systems and policies while expanding opportunities for social justice, mobility, and empowerment. Committed to creating lasting social impact, she takes a strengths-based approach to ensure individuals can fully exercise their human rights while tackling the global learning crisis.

Rodríguez García has led and supported programming design and implementation, curriculum development and professional development training in the U.S.A., South Sudan, Somalia, Malawi, Nicaragua, Bangladesh, Bolivia, India, South Africa, Pakistan, Ethiopia and Honduras.  She, also, has experience remotely managing programs for Yemen, Syria, the Sahel region, Ethiopia, Bangladesh, Ukraine, Afghanistan, southern Africa and Latin America.