AFTER SCHOOL CREDENTIAL

Autobiography
Lizandra Rivera lrivera@ymcamke.org (910) 467 3503

Autobiography: Lizandra Rivera

Born in San Juan, Puerto Rico in September 1977 to Hector H Hernandez and Maria L
Rivera, but moved to Arroyo, Puerto Rico where I was raised and lived until I got married in
May 1998 to Jose L Rivera. I have three children, Alex (19 years), Josliane (17 years), and
Areliz (15 years). Arroyo is a small town in the coast line on the southeast of the island.
With just minutes of the beach, my three sisters and I learned how to swim, fish, kayak,
and do many other aquatic activities. I played volleyball and participated in school track and
field events. My hobbies included dancing, outdoor recreation, and sports. I was always
found with friends at the beach or at the town plaza having fun and learning about life and
the world around me.
Since my early years, education has played an important role in my life. I participated in
school competitions for math, spelling, and science. I attended Jose M. Massari Elementary
School, Jose de Choudens Middle School, Carmen Bozello de Huyke High School which are
all located in Arroyo, Puerto Rico. I graduated from high school in May 1996 in secretarial
studies. I had many academic certificates for participation, ribbons placement in events and
competitions, a couple 2nd place awards in Math, 3 medals for academic achievement in
Math, and I graduated with honors in school. After high school I went to Technologic
Institute of Puerto Rico, Guayama Campus, where I graduated with an Associate Degree in
Business Management with a concentration in Marketing in May 1998 with honors. I got
married 2 days after graduation to Jose L Rivera, who had joined the USMC 6 months prior.
His career path led us to move to the United States where I learned English and continued
to learn new skills.
Being in the military and constantly moving around led me to a very different career
path. I began working with children at a young age by babysitting. However, it was in
January 1999 that my career as a caregiver began when I opened my licensed Family Child
Care in Jacksonville, NC. With very little English and lots of dreams and goals, I pursued a
career that I learned to love very quickly. I discovered my true calling and since then, I
have strived to learned and grow in this amazing field. In the beginning, due to the
language barrier, I continue to work at home with my licensed Family Child Care. Once all
my children were in school all day, I transferred to the Child Development Center for the
Marine Corps Community Services which was part of the same organization I had my
licensed Family Child Care. A new frontier with more goals was opened.

AFTER SCHOOL CREDENTIAL

Autobiography
Lizandra Rivera lrivera@ymcamke.org (910) 467 3503
Working with children has brought lots of opportunities to my life. It has helped me
learn English. It has helped me raised my children as I discover new things, develop new
skills, and learn techniques through experience and trainings. It provided a way to support
my husband financially and at the same time it provided the flexibility I needed to take care
of my children. I have a child who has mental disorders. Through my experience and
trainings, I have been able to be prepared to handle the difficult situations we have faced.
Looking towards the future, I hope to increase my knowledge about children with special
needs and disabilities. I love training and teaching others. As my knowledge increases, I
hope to be a positive instrument for teaching, training, and supporting my program, my
staff, and my childrens needs.
Currently, I am the Brookfield/Greenfield School Age and Day Camp Director for the
YMCA of Metropolitan Milwaukee. In my portfolio, I have 2 school districts with 8 School Age
sites and one K4 Wrap Program. I have one Day Camp and one Wrap Around Day Camp. I
am taking the After School Credential and my goal is to also take the Administrative
Credential. In my role, I have so many opportunities to help, teach, train, develop, create,
promote, and grow. I am part of a great team of professionals that strive for excellence and
work hard to provide quality programs. For 5 years, I worked in Brookfield and this year
Greenfield was added to my portfolio. With programs growing and community needs
increasing, I hope to continue to learn and develop in this field. An area that I am very
interested and I expect to pursue is children with special needs. I have done a few projects
in my career at the YMCA such as planning our First Annual Family Fun Night, opening a
new licensed site, working with YoungStar for the association, and working all the School
Age and Day Camp marketing materials 4 years in a row. I revised a few important
communication pieces such as the Day Camp Parent Handbook and the Day Camp Staff
Policy Handbook. Coming up projects for this year include: a Jr. Achievement program for
Day Camp this summer, aligning our curriculum with the School Age Curriculum Framework,
and incorporating child portfolios in my School Age sites.