Martha Draayer ’09 Director of Intercultural Development

712-707-7215
martha.draayer@nwciowa.edu

Martha (Perez) Draayer encourages intercultural student development by mentoring, supporting and teaching students from underrepresented groups. She leads the Bridge Scholars program, aimed at fostering the leadership skills of select students of color, and advises La Mosaic, a multicultural student club. She also supports Northwestern’s strategic diversity initiatives by collaborating with staff and faculty and encouraging the development of cultural intelligence among all of the campus community. In addition, she leads the college’s bridge-building efforts with the regional Latino community.

In the community, Martha serves as a board member of CASA (Center for Assistance, Service & Advocacy) of Sioux County, through which she helps Latino members of the community with issues such as housing, immigrant rights, public safety and education. She co-founded PIECE, a series of adult English-language courses aimed to meet the growing needs in the Latino community. She also speaks frequently on a variety of topics for local churches, Northwestern’s chapel, the Juntos program, Escuelita Familiar, and locally hosted Christian Community Development Association gatherings. She is a 2009 graduate of Northwestern College and earned a master’s degree in early childhood special education from the University of South Dakota.