CAMP Staff

Maria Andrade, Director
Maria De Los Angeles Andrade was born in Zacatecas Mexico as the second oldest child. Her parents, also born in Zacatecas, chose to move to to pursue the “American Dream” settling down in Sweet Home, Oregon. Growing up Maria knew she wanted to make her parents hard decision of moving to a new country worth it. Knowing nothing about higher education, Maria knew she had to do well in school and applied herself. She graduated as salutatorian in 2001 and applied to Oregon State University. Being the first to go to college, Maria had to learn a lot and navigate higher education on her own including paying her own way through college. She graduated from Oregon State with her Bachelors in Business Administration: Accounting in March 2006 and began her work with CAMP in October 2006. After working for many years and focusing on being an mother to her three children Joaquin, Alejandro, and Elena, Maria chose to continue her education. She graduated with her Master of Business Administration: Business Analytics from Southern Oregon University in August 2021 which opened the door to move up in the program and become CAMP Director in November 2021. As the Administrative Assistant of the Program for 14 years, Maria has supported countless CAMP students in completing their degree. As CAMP Director she continues to show her passion for supporting farmworking students and families in all she does. Maria also coordinates the Migrant Summer Programs hosted at Oregon State University for high school students with agricultural farmworking backgrounds. This is a big passion as Maria is able to work with not only students, but also with parents and families in guiding them through higher education. Most recently in July 2021, Maria was nominated as the Treasurer for the National HEP CAMP Association working with over 100 HEP and CAMP Programs throught the nation.
"Being able to serve the migrant/latino community is such a blessing. I am very fortunate to be able to connect with so many student and families and see the impact one conversation about higher educaiton can have on not just a student, but the whole family." - Maria

Alexsandra Cortés, Academic Counselor
Alexsandra Cortés was born in Brazil where most of her family of nine was born. Her dad a native Brazilian and her mom a descendant of Russian immigrants, made the hard decision to migrate to the United States in 1995 due to the poverty they were facing and the hopes of a better life. Already having family in Oregon, the family settled in the small town of Gervais. Alexsandra is the fifth child of nine and the first to go and graduate college. Do to her Russian orthodox upbringing; education was not a high value especially for women. Instead of getting married and having children like most, Alexsandra pushed the boundaries to pursue her dream to continue her education. Moving away from home to Oregon State University (OSU) was one of the biggest challenges and therefore, Alexsandra lost a lot of family support for a couple years. Though she faced these challenges being at OSU and in CAMP her first year, with all the support from the staff and mentors, she made it to the other side. During her time in undergrad, Alexsandra was a mentor for CAMP for two years. She graduated with her Bachelor of Science in Human Development and Family Sciences, with a double minor is Psychology and Spanish. Alexsandra grew a passion for supporting students like herself, which led to a master’s program at OSU in the College Student Services Administration (CSSA), with a specialization in underrepresented students. During her time in CSSA, she got the opportunity to intern with CAMP. As Alexsandra was getting ready to graduate in June 2016 with her M.ED. She was offered a one-year position with CAMP as the retention specialist. As her one year ended, the position for the CAMP Academic Counselor opened up and she jumped right on it. Outside of CAMP, Alexsandra is married to her CAMP sweet heart Emanuel and they have a one year old son Alexsander Emanuel, as well as an Alaskan Malamute named Storm.
“I am so honored to be giving back to CAMP because they have done so much for me academically, personally and professionally. I truly love my job!”- Alexsandra

Gustavo Esparza, Outreach & Recruitment Coordinator
Gustavo Esparza is a born and raised Oregonian, with family roots in Jalisco, Mexico. The first in his family to graduate both high school and college, Gustavo (also often called Gus) takes great pride in supporting individuals of similar backgrounds and experiences (bilingual/multicultural, first-generation, navigating unfamiliar systems) to achieve optimal outcomes through education and holistic health. Gustavo graduated from Oregon State University in 2022 with a bachelor's degree in public health, and a minor in Human Development and Family Sciences. While he's not the best in looking ahead years down the line, Gustavo has plans to attend graduate school and complete his master's degree, with the specific area of focus still to be determined, desiring to be involved in the intersection of public health and education. Gustavo enjoys being part of CAMP as the Recruiter and sharing about the value of higher education to migrant students and families, done through visiting high schools, resource fairs and school family nights. In his spare time, Gustavo enjoys being physically active, going on hikes, runs, lengthy bike rides, playing basketball, as well as attending sporting events.

Elizabeth Pascacio Diaz, Administrative Program Assistant
Elizabeth Pascacio is from Nyssa, Oregon, a small town in Eastern Oregon. Both of her parents are originally from Guerrero, Mexico, and migrated to the United States in the early 2000s, settling in Nyssa. Elizabeth has an older sister and two younger brothers. Growing up, her parents worked primarily in agriculture. Around the age of 12, Elizabeth began working alongside her mother and oldest sister in migrant farm work. She worked in the fields every summer up until she graduated high school. When it came time to pursue higher education, Elizabeth wasn’t sure if attending a four-year institution would be possible. However, she decided to take a chance and ultimately decided to attend OSU just a month before the school year started. During her first year, Elizabeth was in the College Assistance Migrant Program (CAMP) and a CAMP Scholar Intern (CSI) in 2020-2021. She reconnected with the program in 2022-2023, serving as a CAMP mentor, and in the spring of 2024, she interned as the Summer Program Coordinator for CAMP. Elizabeth is the second person in her family to attend college, graduating from Oregon State University in 2024. She received her Bachelor of Science Degree in Human Development and Family Sciences and a minor in Spanish. Now, she serves as the Administrative Program Assistant for CAMP, continuing her involvement in supporting students from migrant backgrounds. Her academic studies have not finished yet, Elizabeth will be pursing her Master's of Education in Fall 2025 at Oregon State University!