National Leadership Program, Fall 2022
Arianna Montaño was a Nonprofit Management Fellow in RespectAbility’s National Leadership Program for Fall 2022. RespectAbility is a nonprofit organization fighting stigmas and advancing opportunities so that people with disabilities can fully participate in all aspects of community.
Montaño is from the San Diego-Tijuana region. While Spanish is her first language, she learned to speak English at age six. She graduated with honors from the University of California, San Diego, where she earned her B.A in Sociology. Her senior thesis project discussed college students with hearing loss and their experiences in school.
Montaño has always been drawn to work that makes a difference, and until recently has focused on the field of education. In college, she worked at an academic advising office whose goal was to help students navigate academic challenges and help incoming students feel prepared for college life. One summer, she interned with the National Park Service to create bilingual preschool education programs in Salem, Massachusetts. For the past few years, she has been leading creative art, physical fitness, and academic enrichment activities as part of an after-school program for a group of amazing elementary school students.
Going forward, Montaño wants to work in the nonprofit sector, which is how she arrived at RespectAbility. She is excited to join the organization in its mission, and hopes to one day be able to use all her interests in education, nonprofits, youth, and entertainment to create a more inclusive community and society.
Outside of work, Montaño loves dogs and traveling. She has an adorable yorkie poodle and hopes to return to Ireland one day, having studied abroad there in college. She spends most of her free time watching TV shows and movies. If you ever get in a car with her, be prepared for some carpool karaoke.