“If you have come to help me you are wasting your time. But if you recognize that your liberation and mine are bound up together, we can walk together.”
-Lila Watson
Ana Garcia(She/Ella)
I am the founder of Ana Garcia Consulting. I came from Guadalajara, Mexico as an undocumented person with my family when I was a young child. I grew up in Long Beach, CA, but my adventurous spirit has led me across the country to New Hampshire and now to Santa Barbara. As a first-generation college student and immigrant, I did not know what I did not know. How could I ask questions about things I did not understand?
Living in New Hampshire was a life-changing experience. It pushed me far out of my comfort zone and challenged me to learn more about the way our society is intentionally structured to exclude many people by denying our humanity and exploiting us in the name of higher profits. I was also mentored by amazing people who taught me the unwritten curriculum that I would not have gotten access to in any other way. This experience ignited my passion for doing work that disrupts those systems and validates people who are often ignored and rendered invisible. Throughout my career in higher education, I have empowered students and colleagues, particularly those of color, to challenge the oppressive systems and cultures designed to keep us overworked and too exhausted to build fulfilling careers and facilitate lives rooted in joy, rest, and abundance.
Through education, deep self-reflection, and accountability to one another, we can build the capacity to dismantle the systems that oppress so many of us. I am unapologetically honest, radically kind, and action-oriented. As a change-making leader, I understand that acknowledging people’s humanity and dignity is critically necessary to changing culture. I launched this business because I want to create learning opportunities for individuals who are intentionally excluded from accessing critical information about the financial system and “professional” standards and expectations. We are all harmed by oppressive systems, and I aim to build collective learning spaces that push us toward justice and liberation, because our survival depends on it.
I am an advocate and entrepreneur with a background in academic and career counseling, curriculum development, change management, and facilitating decolonized financial system education. I believe that entrepreneurship and a fundamental understanding of the U.S. financial system are key to achieving economic liberation and helping our communities thrive. I look forward to working together!
~Ana Garcia