Admins and Advisors

TRIO - Administration

Dr. Maria Elena Cruz

TRIO(SSS & McNair) | Program Director
Senior Lecturer for Chicana Chicano Studies

Dr. Cruz photo

Dr. Cruz serves as the Director and Principal Investigator of the ASPIRE (Student Support Services) and McNair Scholars TRIO Programs, where she has dedicated her career to empowering first-generation college students. A proud descendant of the Huichol (Wixáritari) Indigenous people of Mexico, Dr. Cruz’s journey as a first-generation graduate informs her deeply held belief that education is a form of social justice. In addition to her administrative leadership, she is a Senior Lecturer in the Chicana/o Studies Department at San Jose State University. She holds a B.A. in English from U.C. Berkeley, where she was a McNair Scholar, and earned both her Master’s and Ph.D. in Sociocultural Anthropology from the University of Texas at Austin. Outside of her professional life, she enjoys traveling and spending time with her loved ones.

TRIO(McNair) - Advising

Schedule an Appointment [Current TRIO(McNair) Students Only]: Check our TRIO Student Website for Calendly links to schedule an appointment.

Taylor-Dawn Francis

TRIO(McNair) | McNair Coordinator / Academic Advisor

Email: taylor-dawn.francis@sjsu.edu

Taylor-Dawn photo

Taylor-Dawn Francis is a first-generation scholar from San José, California. Inspired by the opportunity to capture, portray, and document underrepresented individuals in the literary canon, they chose to devote their studies to English. In addition to working on San José State University’s Reed Magazine, they have served as an editor for the English Department’s newsletter, and a tutor for SJSU’s 100W courses. Throughout their academic career, their research interests have focused on gender studies, queer theory, and critical race theory. In their work as both a Writing Specialist and Program Assistant for the McNair Scholars Program, they have strived to create spaces for people of color in all areas of academia. In their spare time, they enjoy reading, writing, and collaborating on short stories and novels, and critically engaging with movies and TV shows.