Nadia De Léon

Biography

Dr. Nadia De Leon is a researcher and educational leader, member of the Panamanian National Research System, currently affiliated at INDICASAT, CIEPS and Universidad Santa Maria la Antigua. She served as Director of Service-Learning and instructor at the Center for Comparative Studies in Race and Ethnicity and Stanford University.  Previously, she directed programs in international and intercultural education and community engagement, and taught courses at Western Kentucky University, her alma mater, where she obtained a Bachelor’s in interdisciplinary art education with emphasis in dance, a graduate certificate in gender studies, a Master’s from the department of Folklore and Anthropology, and a Doctorate in Educational Leadership with emphasis in higher education and non-profit organizational leadership. She has also trained in business administration, early childhood education, museology, as well as yoga, meditation and mindfulness. She has largely focused on experiential learning, intangible cultural heritage, diversity and intercultural competence, and the overlap of higher education and community development. In Panama, she has collaborates tirelessly with schools, universities, non-profit organizations and government agencies, to support and improve education. She is founder of Praxia Educational Consultants and the education research center CIEdu, and has become a prestigious consultant and entrepreneur. Her achievements have been widely recognized through such honors as fellowships at the Smithsonian Latino Center and Imagining America; as well as awards for excellence in teaching, research, and public work, including her work in gender equality as well as women and girls in science.