For Community Schools United Coordinator Tamara Reyes Pizarro, personal experience fuels a commitment to helping every child and family feel supported, valued and connected to opportunity.
When Tamara Reyes Pizarro moved from Puerto Rico to Michigan as a child, she navigated a new language and environment while building connections with educators and community members who encouraged her to find her voice and recognize her potential.
Those experiences continue to shape the work she does today as a Community Schools United coordinator with United Way of the Chattahoochee Valley (UWCV).
As we celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month, Tamara’s story is a reminder of how personal experiences can inspire meaningful change and how the right support at the right time can make a lasting difference in a child’s life.
Connecting Families to the Support They Need
Community Schools United brings schools and community partners together to help address the challenges that can affect student success. Through this work, Tamara helps connect students and families with resources, services and relationships that support their well-being.
That may mean helping a family navigate a housing challenge, access food assistance, find employment resources or connect with health care. It also means working alongside educators, local organizations, businesses, churches and volunteers to identify needs and bring the right people together to address them.
Working alongside families, educators and community partners, Tamara helps identify resources and build connections that support student success. Her approach recognizes that families bring their own strengths, knowledge and priorities to the process.
The idea is simple: children are better positioned to learn and thrive when their families have the support they need.
For Tamara, schools are more than places where children attend classes. They can also be trusted places where families feel welcomed, heard and connected to resources that help them move forward.
Making Every Family Feel Welcome
Tamara understands firsthand how language barriers and cultural differences can affect a person’s sense of belonging. That perspective informs her commitment to helping Hispanic and Latino families feel included and ensuring that differences do not become barriers to opportunity.
Through family activities, cultural celebrations, workshops and community partnerships, she helps create opportunities for families to build relationships, learn about available resources and become more connected to their schools.
This work reflects an important part of the Community Schools United approach: listening to families, recognizing their strengths and building solutions alongside them.
When families feel that they belong and have people they can turn to for support, stronger relationships can develop between home, school and the broader community.
Creating Space for Girls to Grow
Tamara’s commitment to young people extends beyond her work with Community Schools United. She also founded the Lady Dolphins Creative Arts and Crafts Club, which gives elementary school girls, particularly Black and Hispanic students, opportunities to explore creativity, develop confidence and build leadership skills.
As an artist and crafter, Tamara uses creative activities to encourage self-expression and connection. Through mentorship and partnerships with positive role models, the club also helps participants recognize their talents and envision what is possible for their futures.
For Tamara, these experiences are about more than art. They are opportunities for girls to discover their voices, build meaningful relationships and understand that their backgrounds and circumstances do not define their potential.
Turning Experience Into Impact
Tamara’s journey illustrates how the support we receive can influence the support we give to others. The encouragement she experienced as a child helped shape her understanding of what it means to show up for someone, and she now brings that perspective to her work with students and families across the Chattahoochee Valley.
At United Way, we believe lasting change happens when people and organizations work together to address challenges and create opportunities. Tamara brings that belief to life by building relationships, connecting families with resources, and helping young people see what is possible.
This Hispanic Heritage Month, we’re proud to recognize Tamara for the leadership, creativity and care she brings to students and families across the Chattahoochee Valley. Her work is a reminder of what becomes possible when people feel welcomed, their strengths are recognized, and meaningful relationships create pathways to opportunity.
Learn more about Community Schools United and how United Way of the Chattahoochee Valley works with schools and community partners to support students and families.
This spotlight was inspired by Courier Eco Latino’s October 12, 2026, “Who’s Who of the Hispanic Community” feature by Wane Hailes, which recognized Tamara Reyes Pizarro during Hispanic Heritage Month. Read the original article in Courier Eco Latino.
