Susana Cordova has worked in K-12 education for over 30 years. She started her career as a bilingual teacher in Denver, Colorado where she grew up as a first generation college graduate. Public schools shaped her experiences and opportunities and she was able to rise through the ranks from the classroom to become superintendent. Along the way, she served as an assistant principal, principal, director, chief academic officer, chief schools officer, and deputy superintendent before becoming the Superintendent in the Denver Public Schools. She also served as deputy superintendent in Dallas ISD, the second largest district in Texas.

As superintendent in Denver, Cordova led significant improvements in student outcomes, including an 8% increase in graduation rates for African American Students and a 10% improvement in Latino/a student graduation rates. In 2020, under her leadership, students completed more than 31,000 rigorous courses with a passing rate of 89%, and elementary multilingual students outperformed their peers across the state in reading. She is very proud of her commitment to biliteracy and bilingualism and helped shift the district to an asset-based approach to supporting multilingual students. 

She now splits her time between Dallas and Denver, and is focused on supporting systems leaders in their efforts to create optimal conditions for students to thrive.