Gloria Bonilla Santiago

Early life

Bonilla-Santiago’s parents migrated to the United States from Puerto Rico. She received a B.A. from Glassboro State College, now known as Rowan University; an M.S.W. from Rutgers University; and an M.A. in Philosophy and Ph.D. in Sociology from City University of New York. She has also completed post-doctoral studies at the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University.

Professional life

Bonilla-Santiago is a noted expert in the fields of community development, migration of women, diversity management, organizational leadership and public policy. She is considered a pioneer in the application of social capital to improve challenged schools and communities.

In 1993 Bonilla-Santiago and the Rutgers Center for Strategic Urban Community Leadership developed the concept of an independently governed, public charter school that could improve education and opportunities for the children and families of Camden, NJ. This concept led to Bonilla-Santiago’s creation of LEAP Academy University Charter School in 1997. The school is founded on the model of engaged scholarship which has created a system where the entire community, students, parents and local organizations and businesses have a vested interest in student success.

Bonilla-Santiago is an advocate of merit-based pay for teachers which has been used to great success at LEAP Academy. Both teacher tenure and merit pay have been combined in a Professional Development and Performance Based Compensation program that rewards teachers based on their ability to help students make significant academic gains as well as their willingness and contributions to school-wide success. On February 23, 2011 Santiago appeared on MSNBC Andrea Mitchell Reports to discuss merit pay for teachers. Bonilla-Santiago is also a specialist columnist with the Huffington Post where she discusses educational issues such as charter schools and the need for increased science, math and technology education in elementary and secondary schools.

Role with LEAP Academy University Charter School

Bonilla-Santiago founded LEAP Academy University Charter School in Camden, New Jersey, in 1997. It is one of 13 inaugural public charter schools in New Jersey. At that time, LEAP was the first new school to open in Camden in 30 years.

LEAP Academy initially opened as a K-5 charter school serving 324 students. Each subsequent year, it added a grade until reaching full enrollment of 780 students in grades K-12. It also houses a 90 student preschool program. LEAP Academy is now the largest charter school in the state.

The school operates 200 days a year on an extended day schedule. School hours are 8:30 am – 5:30 pm regular schedule; 4 – 7:00 pm extended day. The school also operates a Saturday extended program.

LEAP Academy was first housed in temporary modular units in Camden. The school is now located in two state-of-the-art education facilities. An elementary school building was opened in 1999 after a $7.5 million renovation grant from the Delaware River Port Authority (DRPA). A high school building, meanwhile, was a combined effort, as Rutgers leased the land for the building and the DRPA provided both a $2 million grant and $8 million in tax-exempt bonds for its construction in 2005.

In 2003 LEAP was honored with the Pioneer Award and Exemplary School Award during the first New Jersey Charter Schools Recognition Ceremony sponsored by the New Jersey Department of Education Office of Innovative Programs.

LEAP’s graduated its first class of high school students in 2005 with 100% college acceptance. Every class since then has achieved 100% college acceptance.

Alfredo Santiago Endowed Scholarship

The Alfredo Santiago Endowed Scholarship was established in 1999 by Bonilla-Santiago in memory of her husband, Alfredo Santiago, to increase the number of children in Camden who attend college.

The scholarship provides financial assistance to first-year undergraduate students who graduate from LEAP Academy University Charter School and enroll full-time at one of Rutgers University’s three campuses. In 2002, a donation from former President/CEO of Commerce Bank, Vernon Hill, created the Commerce Alfredo Santiago Scholarship, which allowed the endowment to support students attending colleges outside Rutgers as well.

The Scholarship is awarded annually to eligible LEAP graduates based on academic merit and financial need with an emphasis on increasing diversity at Rutgers. Recipients who remain in good academic standing may renew the scholarship for up to three years (four years if they are enrolled in a five-year program). Recipients who remain in good academic standing at their college may renew the scholarship for up to three years (four years if they are enrolled in a five-year program).

Since 2005, the Scholarship has made it possible for 25 students from Camden, NJ to attend college.

Books

Gloria Bonilla-Santiago is the author of two books, Breaking Ground and Barriers: Hispanic Women Developing Effective Leadership (Marin, 1992) and Organizing Puerto Rican Migrant Farmworkers: The Experience of Puerto Ricans in New Jersey (Peter Lang, 1988). She has published numerous articles and monographs and contributed a chapter to Helping Battered Women, edited by A. Roberts (Oxford University Press, 1996). In 2011, Santiago is expected to release her third book, Miracle on Cooper Street, an account of how LEAP Academy, Rutgers University and other community organizations transformed of one of America’s poorest and most neglected cities, Camden, NJ, through education. This book challenges academic institutions of higher learning, local and state politicians and the community to rethink community development and urban public education.

Awards and honors

2008 L’Oreal Paris Women Of Worth Award

2007 National Mujer Award from the National Hispana Leadership Institute

1993 Congressional Citation from Congressman Frank Pallone Jr. for contributions to the Hispanic Community

1992 Warren I. Susman Award for Excellence in Teaching