ABOUT Dr. Emma Violand-Sánchez
Emma’s memoir Dreams and Shadows: An Immigrant’s Journey will be published in March 20, 2025 by Kohler Books. Pre-Order Now!
Dr. Emma Violand-Sánchez was born in Cochabamba, Bolivia, and a lifelong educator and advocate on behalf of immigrant and refugee students and their families. She came to the United States — to Fairfax, Virginia as a 16-year-old without her parents. She graduated from Mt. Vernon High School in 1962 and received a scholarship to Radford University. In 1966, Emma graduated with a B.S. and earned her M.S. in 1968.
After the tragic death of her husband in Vietnam in 1968, she returned to Bolivia as teacher and counselor in schools and professor at Catholic University. She founded Un Maestro Mas, a nonprofit organization to raise funds to hire teachers for fifteen rural schools.
In 1976, she moved back to Virginia to pursue her doctorate and began a 30-year career with Arlington Public Schools. She received her doctorate from George Washington University in 1987. She was the Supervisor of English for Speakers of Other Languages and High Intensity Language Training in grades Pre-K-12 from 1980 to 2007. Her work in building a “Community of Learners” centered around the needs of students and their families became legendary. Emma was an adjunct professor at Georgetown University from 1998 to 2018.
As a community leader, she established the first Bilingual GED Program for Virginia. In 1998 she funded Escuela Bolivia, whose mission was to teach Spanish and culture to students, English to parents, and leadership development. As President of the League of United Latin American Citizens, Council 4606, she led in the establishment of Project Family whose mission was to work with parents of children from pre-birth to age 3.
Emma became the first Latina to chair the Arlington School Board. In 2010 she founded The Dream Project, an organization that provides scholarships and mentorship to students whose immigration status is a barrier to their dreams of higher education. led the effort to secure in-state college tuition for immigrant regardless of their immigration status. She has taught and consulted in communities throughout the United States, and in Guatemala, Puerto Rico, El Salvador, Cuba, and Bolivia.
Dr. Violand-Sánchez published several articles, book chapters and monographs. Her work has been honored with many awards including a Fulbright Fellowship (1995-96); AAUW American Fellowship (1997) The James Hunter III Human Rights Award (2000); The Mexican American Legal Defense Fund Community Service Award (2003); Washingtonian of the Year (2017); and the Arlington County Spirit of Community Award (2018) “Orgullo Boliviano” (2024).
Brief Author Bio
Emma Violand-Sánchez was born in Bolivia and is an educator and fierce advocate on behalf of immigrants and refugees. She received her BS and MS degrees from Radford University and her doctorate at George Washington University. During her forty-year career with Arlington Public Schools, Emma became the first Latina elected to the school board. She has consulted throughout the US and Latin America and published widely in the field of education, in both Spanish and English. Her awards include a Fulbright Fellowship, AAUW American Fellowship, the James Hunter III Human Rights Award, the MALDEF Community Service Award, Washingtonian of the Year, an Arlington Spirit of Community Award, and the 2024 Marquis Who’s Who Lifetime Achievement Award.
Stories of Life - Emma Violand-Sanchez, Ed.D.
This Stories of Life episode features Doctor Emma Violand-Sanchez, proud immigrant, educator, former Arlington School Board member, and Dream Project founder. She talks about being an Arlington Public School educator and serving on the Arlington School Board. She also discusses establishing the Dream Project as a way to empower students to overcome immigration barriers in pursuit of an education.