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{{Draft topics|biography|north-america}}
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{{Infobox writer
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| honorific_prefix =
| name = Thomas Ray Garcia
| image = [[File:Thomas Ray Garcia, July 2024.jpg|thumb]]
| image_size =
| image_upright =
| alt = Thomas Ray Garcia, presentingJuly at the Museum of South Texas History2024
| caption = GarciaThomas presentingRay at the Museum of SouthGarcia, TexasJuly History2024
| birth_name =
| birth_date = <!-- {{Birth date and age|YYYY|MM|DD}} --> September 9, 1993
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'''Thomas Ray Garcia''' is a [[Latino]] author, professor, and entrepreneur from [[McAllen]], Texas. He resides in the [[Lower Rio Grande Valley|Rio Grande Valley]] along the [[Mexico–United States border|U.S.-Mexico border]], the region of focus throughout his writing. A first-generation college graduate of [[Princeton University]]<ref>{{Cite web |title=Thomas Ray Garcia ’16 builds relationships and a nonprofit to help Latino students {{!}} Princeton Alumni |url=https://alumni.princeton.edu/stories/thomas-ray-garcia-16-builds-relationships-and-nonprofit-help-latino-students |access-date=2024-09-23 |website=alumni.princeton.edu |language=en}}</ref>, Garcia has spearheaded college access initiatives throughout his work in K-12 education and higher education. In 2013, he founded the College Scholarship Leadership Access Program, a youth-led college access program that he developed into a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |last= |first= |date=2019-10-20 |title=About CSLAP |url=https://www.cslapofficial.com/about |access-date=2024-09-22 |website=College Scholarship Leadership Access Program |language=en}}</ref> He is currently an English professor at [[South Texas College]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=English |url=https://www.southtexascollege.edu/academics/english/ |access-date=2024-09-23 |website=South Texas College |language=en}}</ref>
After'''Thomas winningRay Garcia''' is a [[Latino]] author, professor, and entrepreneur from [[McAllen]], Texas. He resides in the Américo[[Lower ParedesRio LiteraryGrande ArtsValley|Rio PrizeGrande forValley]] Fictionalong the [[Mexico–United States border|U.S.-Mexico border]], Garciathe publishedregion of focus throughout his writing. His literary debut, ''The River Runs: Stories'' (2023)'','' was named a finalist in 2023the [[International Latino Book Awards]] for Best Collection of Short Stories - English.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Montoya |first=Luis |date=2024-09-16 |title=Valley author Garcia earns accolade from International Latino Book Awards |url=https://riograndeguardian.com/valley-author-garcia-earns-accolade-from-international-latino-book-awards/ |access-date=2024-09-23 |website=Rio Grande Guardian |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=TBB |date=2023-06-20 |title=Pharr Native Publishes Award-Winning Book of Short Stories |url=https://texasborderbusiness.com/pharr-native-publishes-award-winning-book-of-short-stories/ |access-date=2024-09-23 |website=Texas Border Business |language=en-US}}</ref> HisThe literary debutbook was followed by a co-authored work, ''El Curso de la Raza: The Education of Aurelio Manuel Montemayor,'' about the South Texas [[Chicano Movement]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=El Curso de la Raza |url=https://www.tamupress.com/book/9781648431272/el-curso-de-la-raza/ |access-date=2024-09-23 |website=Texas A&M University Press |language=en-US}}</ref>
In 20242013, Garcia wasfounded namedthe aCollege finalistScholarship inLeadership theAccess [[InternationalProgram, Latinoa Bookyouth-led Awards]]college foraccess Bestprogram Collectionthat ofhe Shortdeveloped Storiesinto -a English[[501(c)(3) organization|501(c)(3) nonprofit organization]].<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |last=Montoya |first=Luis |date=20242019-0910-1620 |title=ValleyAbout author Garcia earns accolade from International Latino Book AwardsCSLAP |url=https://riograndeguardianwww.cslapofficial.com/valley-author-garcia-earns-accolade-from-international-latino-book-awards/about |access-date=2024-09-2322 |website=RioCollege Scholarship Leadership GrandeAccess GuardianProgram |language=en-US}}</ref> Previously,He heis hadcurrently receivedan accoladesEnglish forprofessor shortat stories[[South laterTexas publishedCollege]].<ref>{{Cite inweb ''The|title=English River|url=https://www.southtexascollege.edu/academics/english/ Runs'', notably co|access-winningdate=2024-09-23 the|website=South PrincetonTexas UniversityCollege Ward Mathis Prize in 2016.|language=en}}</ref>
== Early Life and Education ==
Garcia was born on September 9, 1993 in McAllen, Texas. He grew up in a single-parent household in [[Pharr, Texas|Pharr]], Texas. Garcia graduated from [[Pharr-San Juan-Alamo North High School|PSJA North Early College High School]] atas theclass top of his classvaledictorian.<ref>{{Cite web |title=CSLAP {{!}} Thomas Ray Garcia {{!}} Rio Grande Valley |url=https://www.cslapofficial.com/thomasraygarcia |access-date=2024-09-23 |website=CSLAP |language=en}}</ref> According to Garcia, [[Princeton University]]'s financial aid program motivated him to apply and matriculate to the [[Ivy League]] University.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Thomas Ray Garcia '16 builds relationships and a nonprofit to help Latino students {{!}} Princeton Alumni |url=https://alumni.princeton.edu/stories/thomas-ray-garcia-16-builds-relationships-and-nonprofit-help-latino-students |access-date=2024-10-06 |website=alumni.princeton.edu |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=First in the Family {{!}} Princeton Alumni Weekly |url=https://paw.princeton.edu/article/first-family |access-date=2024-09-23 |website=paw.princeton.edu}}</ref>
He pursued an English degree and participated in the Mellon Mays Undergraduate Fellowship program.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Thomas Garcia |url=https://mmuf-ebcao.princeton.edu/people/past-fellows/thomas-garcia |access-date=2024-09-23 |website=Mellon Mays Undergraduate Fellowship |language=en}}</ref> While at Princeton, Garcia wrote blogs for prospective students through the Office of Undergraduate Admissions.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Thomas Ray Garcia {{!}} Princeton Admission |url=https://admission.princeton.edu/blogs/blogger-profile/thomas-ray-garcia |access-date=2024-09-23 |website=admission.princeton.edu}}</ref> He also co-founded the Princeton Hidden Minority Council, a student organization that advocated for first-generation and low-income minority students, which later won the Martin Luther King Jr. Journey Award.<ref>{{Cite web |lastlast1=Aronson |firstfirst1=Emily |last2=Office of Communications |first2=Princeton |last3= |last4= |first4= |title=King Day Journey Award recognizes Princeton Hidden Minority Council |url=https://www.princeton.edu/news/2016/01/18/king-day-journey-award-recognizes-princeton-hidden-minority-council |access-date=2024-09-23 |website=Princeton University |language=en}}</ref>
After graduating from Princeton, Garcia taught high school students at [[Pharr-San Juan-Alamo Independent School District|PSJA ISD]] before pursuing a doctoral degree in English at [[University of California, Los Angeles|UCLA]].<ref>{{Cite web |date=2022-01-13 |title=The transformative power of travel |url=https://www.college.ucla.edu/2022/01/13/the-transformative-power-of-travel/ |access-date=2024-09-23 |website=UCLA College |language=en-US}}</ref> He left the doctoral program with a terminal master's degree in 2022. He later pursued a second master's degree in Higher Education Administration at [[University of Texas Rio Grande Valley|UTRGV]] in 2023.<ref>{{Cite web |title=UTRGV Fall 2023 Commencement |url=https://www.utrgv.edu/commencement/_files/documents/33214-fall-2023-commencement-program-pages.pdf}}</ref>
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== Career ==
[[File:Thomas Ray Garcia at CSLAP.jpg|alt=Thomas Ray Garcia speaking with a student at the College Scholarship Leadership Access Program|thumb|Garcia at the College Scholarship Leadership Access Program]]
Garcia founded the College Scholarship Leadership Access Program at age 19.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Muñoz |first=Mario |date=2022-02-07 |title=Podcast: The story behind the start of CSLAP |url=https://riograndeguardian.com/podcast-the-story-behind-the-start-of-cslap/ |access-date=2024-09-23 |website=Rio Grande Guardian |language=en-US}}</ref> From 2013 to 2017, the college access program consisted of youth-led workshops and courses on college admissions. According to Garcia, his summer breaks at Princeton were dedicated to leadingdirecting the program and developing near-peer mentorship initiatives.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Taylor |first=Steve |date=2015-08-18 |title=PSJA alumni mentor students on going to university |url=https://riograndeguardian.com/psja-alumni-mentor-students-on-going-to-university/ |access-date=2024-09-23 |website=Rio Grande Guardian |language=en-US}}</ref>
The program evolved into Garcia's high school course at PSJA ISD, his first[[Pharr-San fullJuan-timeAlamo positionIndependent afterSchool graduatingDistrict|PSJA from Princeton UniversityISD]]. In 2019, Garcia incorporated the College Scholarship Leadership Access Program as a [[501(c)(3) organization|501(c)(3) nonprofit organization]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Muñoz |first=Mario |date=2022-02-07 |title=Podcast: The story behind the start of CSLAP |url=https://riograndeguardian.com/podcast-the-story-behind-the-start-of-cslap/ |access-date=2024-10-06 |website=Rio Grande Guardian |language=en-US}}</ref> He served as executive director from 2019 to 2023 before transitioning to chairing the board of directors.
At UCLA, Garcia began teaching English at the collegiate level.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Coursicle – Chat with classmates |url=https://www.coursicle.com/ucla/professors/T.+Garcia/ |access-date=2024-09-23 |website=www.coursicle.com}}</ref> As a graduate student, he taught undergraduate courses on critical reading and writing, creative writing, and American Literature.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2020-06-09 |title=UCLA English 4WS Service Learning Projects |url=https://english4ws2020.wordpress.com/ |access-date=2024-09-23 |website=UCLA English 4WS Service Learning Projects |language=en}}</ref>
In 2024, he joined the English faculty at South Texas College, where he currently teaches courses on rhetoric, composition, and literary genre.
Garcia's latestis initiativethe isco-founder of Beyond Borders Books, an independent press hebased co-foundedin with educator ClarissaPharr, RiojasTexas.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2024-05-26 |title=Beyond Borders Books |url=https://www.beyond-borders-books.com/ |access-date=2024-09-22 |website=Beyond Borders Books |language=en-US}}</ref>
== Politics and Activism ==
In 2017, Garcia submitted an application to the Texas State Historical Commission to erect a historical marker commemorating the 1971 Pharr Riot.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Vela |first=Abigail |date=2023-02-07 |title=Op-Ed: The Pharr Riot and the Need for Mexican-American Studies |url=https://truchargv.com/pharr-riots/ |access-date=2024-09-23 |website=Trucha RGV |language=en-US}}</ref> The historical marker was erected in Pharr in 2021.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Karami |first=Iris |date=February 11, 2021 |title=Pharr Riot receives historical marker 50 years later |url=https://www.valleycentral.com/news/local-news/the-pharr-riots-50-years-later-receive-historical-marker/ |access-date=September 23, 2024 |website=Valley Central}}</ref>
In 2022, Garcia ran for the [[Texas State Board of Education]] as a Democrat. His platform prioritizedfocused on expanding mental health resources; updating the state's learning standards on digital literacy, computer science, and ethnic studies; and advocating against statewide book bans. He placed 3rd in a 5-person primary election.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Thomas Garcia (Texas) |url=https://ballotpedia.org/Thomas_Garcia_(Texas) |access-date=2024-09-23 |website=Ballotpedia |language=en}}</ref>
Garcia has written opinion pieces on school vouchers,<ref>{{Cite web |last=Garcia |first=Thomas Ray |date=2023-02-12 |title=Garcia: The SBOE Chooses Passivity Over Principle on Vouchers |url=https://riograndeguardian.com/garcia-the-sboe-chooses-passivity-over-principle-on-vouchers/ |access-date=2024-09-23 |website=Rio Grande Guardian |language=en-US}}</ref> school-to-industry partnerships,<ref>{{Cite web |last=Garcia |first=Thomas Ray |date=2021-06-08 |title=Garcia: Enhancing the Internship Experience Through Partnerships |url=https://riograndeguardian.com/garcia-enhancing-the-internship-experience-through-partnerships/ |access-date=2024-09-23 |website=Rio Grande Guardian |language=en-US}}</ref> near-peer mentorship in college admissions,<ref>{{Cite web |last=Garcia |first=Thomas Ray |date=2020-09-28 |title=Garcia: Near-Peer Mentorship During COVID-19 |url=https://riograndeguardian.com/garcia-near-peer-mentorship-during-covid-19/ |access-date=2024-09-23 |website=Rio Grande Guardian |language=en-US}}</ref> and the Texas State Board of Education.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Vela |first=Abigail |date=2022-05-13 |title=COMMENTARY: IN SCHOOL BOARD BATTLES BIG MONEY WINS BIPARTISAN SUPPORT |url=https://truchargv.com/school-board/ |access-date=2024-09-23 |website=Trucha RGV |language=en-US}}</ref>
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Garcia, Thomas Ray}}
{{Draft categories|
[[:Category:American writers]]
[[:Category:American writers of Mexican descent]]
[[:Category:Princeton University alumni]]
[[:Category:UCLA alumni]]
[[:Category:University of Texas Rio Grande Valley alumni]]
[[:Category:People from Pharr, Texas]]
[[:Category:American professors]]
[[:Category:Living people]]}}
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