Deborah Santiago is a remarkable innovator, thought leader, and educational visionary. With an extensive experience of over 20 years, she has initiated and led various local, national, and federal programs. Her policy and research efforts have been successful in supporting rising aspirations, improving enrollment opportunities, and achieving increased rates of higher education completion, especially for Latino students. Santiago is the CEO and co-founder of Excelencia in Education, a trusted source of data and research on higher education policy and evidence-based practices that focuses on analyzing research and practices to inform policy, incentivizing action, and collaborating with institutions committed to supporting Latino college student success.

Santiago's work has been recognized in various publications, including The Economist, New York Times, Washington Post, AP, and Chronicle of Higher Education. She has served many organizations, including the LA County Alliance for Student Achievement, Library of Congress' Congressional Research Service, Office of Postsecondary Education at the US Dept of Education, and White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for Hispanic Americans.

Furthermore, Santiago has received various honors throughout her career, including the prestigious Pahara Fellowship from the Aspen Institute. She is an advisor to the ASPIRA Association and currently serves on the Advisory Board of TheDream.US and Higher Achievement.