Hello! I am Dr. Ralph A. Córdova and am thrilled to be Rio del Sol’s first principal!

A little about me: I am a native Californian who grew up in a proud family of migrant farm workers. With over 25 years of service in public education, I am committed to all students’ developing creative confidence in all aspects of disciplines and subject matters so they can become problem-solvers and problem-seekers.

I grew up bilingual, speaking Spanish/English concurrently in my home town of Blythe, CA where I attended public schools. I earned my B.A. from the University of California Riverside where I majored in German Literature, Language and Linguistics. I received my teacher preparation experience and credential from the University of California Santa Barbara (UCSB). I taught at the elementary grades as a bilingual Spanish/English teacher for 13 years at La Patera School in the Goleta Union School District where I collaboratively developed transdisciplinary project-based learning with my students, families and community partners. While a classroom teacher, I completed my M.A. and Ph.D. with an emphasis in ethnography and ethno-methodology. While at UCSB, I also worked 6 years supervising and preparing teacher-candidates.

During the last 12 years, I have been a university professor in St. Louis, MO; most recently as an Associate Professor of Education at the University St. Louis where I have taught courses at the undergraduate and graduate levels on a range of foci from Language Arts, Literacy, Social Science Methods, and, Second Language Acquisition. I have a passion for teaching and research, and have published in numerous research studies on the role of students as leaders in community-based transdiscplinary learning.

I believes that our students’ most important first teachers are their parents, families and home communities. And because of this, I will work closely with Rio del Sol educators to develop rich and powerful learning partnerships with our families and community members.

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