Meet the OSE Staff

Dr. Maricela Alvarado has over 18 years of experience in higher education in various Student Affairs areas, including Student Conduct, Upward Bound, Educational Opportunity Program, Summer Bridge, Student Life, and Fraternity and Sorority Life. In her previous role as the Assistant Dean for Student Affairs in the College of the Arts at California State University, Fullerton, she developed and led college initiatives related to student success, specifically in the areas of improving advising, retention, graduation rates, and closing the achievement gap of underrepresented students. Maricela was also instrumental in opening the college’s Student Success Center, which supports over 600 students annually. Currently, she serves as the inaugural Director for Online Student Experience where she leads a variety of initiatives and strategic projects that facilitates change and positively enhances access to Online Student Experiences at UC San Diego.

Dr. Alvarado is a first-generation college graduate, having earned a bachelor’s degree in human services with a mental health emphasis from California State University, Fullerton, and a master’s degree in public policy and administration from California State University, Long Beach. She earned a doctorate in Higher Education Leadership at Azusa Pacific University (APU), where she was the inaugural recipient of the Presidential Fellowship. Maricela worked directly with former President Paul Ferguson to conduct research to support university-wide strategic initiatives. Maricela’s research centers on issues of equity, transformational practices, and becoming a student-ready practitioner. As a scholar-practitioner, she has co-authored publications on becoming a student-ready educator. She believes educators play a critical role in student success, especially for historically underrepresented students. She is passionate and dedicated to serving students.

Angelina “Angie” Garcia Nevarez (she/her/ella) earned her B.A. in English from UC Santa Barbara in June of 2020. During her undergraduate career at UCSB, she had the opportunity to find her passion for student affairs by working within the Office of Student Engagement in peer advising and mentoring roles to support student organizations, Greek life, the Student Initiated Outreach Program, and the First and Transfer Year Experience Program. As an individual that highly values service and mentoring opportunities, Angie served two years as a service member for AmeriCorps through the San Diego County Office of Education. As a mentor and recruiter for AmeriCorps, she supported underrepresented K-12 students and families across San Diego county. For the past year, Angie has been part of the UC San Diego community as the Program Coordinator for the First and Transfer Year Experience Program through The Colleges. During her free time, Angie enjoys attending live music events, playing guitar, meditating and practicing yoga.

Please contact Angie by email at angarcianevarez@ucsd.edu and/or Teams.