Paola Castellanos is the Operations Coordinator at Galería de la Raza, where she oversees scheduling, rentals, volunteers, space functions, and other day-to-day administrative tasks.
Her passion for prison, labor, and education reform led her to pursue a B.A. in Political Science and Chicanx/Latinx Studies at the University of California, Berkeley. There, she examined how Latine people in diaspora engage with United States politics and seek refuge within its systems. Additionally, she explored how access to resources, representation, and academic support enables Latine communities to pursue and attain professional degrees, highlighting the need to structurally improve the higher education system. Motivated by her lived experiences, she believes deeply in the power of mutual aid, education, and art as tools for liberation.