Dilan Pedraza (he/him/el) is the Teach Plus National Policy Director and Strategic Advisor to the CEO. In this role, Dilan supports teachers from across the country to advance equity-driven federal policy change. He also supports state-level policy advocacy and works to build the teacher leadership movement nationwide.
Prior to joining Teach Plus, Dilan served as a Legislative Fellow for Senator Jeffrey A. Merkley (D-OR), advising the Senator on immigration, labor, early childhood, and housing policy. Dilan was a Teach For America (TFA) 2016 corps member and taught 8th grade English in his hometown of Richmond, California. Each year, Dilan’s students received the highest test scores and reading level growth in the school. Dilan served as a TFA National DACA Advisory Board member, providing strategic advice to the TFA national leadership team on immigration issues. Prior to teaching, Dilan served as Legal Advocate with Immigrants Rising in San Francisco, CA, and College Resource and Engagement Leader with the East Bay College Fund in Oakland, CA.
Dilan holds a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science: Legal Studies from California State University, Chico and was a recipient of the Bronson Excellence in Legal Studies Merit Award and the NAACP Service Award. Dilan hopes to inspire others who share a similar identity and circumstances and uses his personal and professional experience to elevate and strengthen Teach Plus’s state and federal advocacy.
