Mara Martinez
Mara Martinez, born and raised in Chicago, began her career as a public servant over 10 years ago when she served as a high school summer intern in the 1st and 32nd ward offices as a part of Mikva Summer Fellows program from Mikva Challenge. As she continued her studies, she realized her enjoyment in helping the community and continued her work at the 32nd ward office.
Mara graduated from Von Steuben Metropolitan Science Center and attended Quincy University for two years. She returned to Chicago to finish her B.A. in Communications and Mass Media Studies from DePaul University.
Mara currently is the Program Development Coordinator in the Children Service Division at the Department of Family and Support Services (DFSS) for the City of Chicago. Mara’s focus in her role is to ensure the funded delegate agencies in the Chicago Early Learning (CEL) program are updated with pertinent information to continue to strengthen early childhood education for the children of Chicago.
Since her time at DFSS, she has led external communications to over 800 community-based early childhood program delegate agency staff and partners, managed the Children Services Chicago website ensuring that it has the most up-to-date information to better serve Chicago agencies and families. Mara also has a detailed touch to reviewing grants and Requests For Proposals.
Her commitment to serving the community stems from her hard-working immigrant family, who taught her to give back to those in need. Most recently, she worked with the mayor's office to welcome Venezuelan refugees to our great city.
Mara volunteers at Advocates for Adolescent Mothers (AFAM), an organization committed to providing young parents with the support they need to break the cycle of poverty. AFAM was essential in ensuring that Mara completed her undergraduate studies as a single parent by providing Mara with an annual scholarship.
As a coffee aficionado, Mara enjoys supporting local Latinx-owned coffee shops.
When Mara isn’t working hard for Chicago families, Mara loves spending time with her supportive husband, her beautiful children, and their playful dog in their backyard at their Little Village home.
