Mario Piña

Mario Piña joined Raise Your Hand Texas in June of 2022 and brings over nine years of experience working with schools and supporting students. He currently serves as the Regional Advocacy Director for the Greater Austin area.

Previously, he was an Instructional coach at Paredes Middle School in Austin ISD. He served as the chair of the Campus Advisory Committee and campus dyslexia designee. At the district level, Piña served on the District Advisory Council and has represented the district on the Innovation District Advisory Committee.

Piña is a leader in bilingual pedagogy, having written a dual language curriculum for the district and presenting on best practices for dual language programs at the local, state, and national level.

He has also served on the organizing committee for the ¡Adelante! conference, and as an executive board member of Education Austin and the Texas State Teachers Association. He holds a bachelor’s degree in Applied Learning and Development with a focus in bilingual education from The University of Texas at Austin.

“Language is the road map of a culture. It tells you where its people come from and where they are going.” – Rita Mae Brown