{"id":23432,"date":"2022-03-24T19:37:31","date_gmt":"2022-03-24T23:37:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom2\/2022\/03\/24\/haverhill-mother-is-named-national-fellow\/"},"modified":"2026-05-13T15:31:26","modified_gmt":"2026-05-13T19:31:26","slug":"haverhill-mother-is-named-national-fellow","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/2022\/03\/24\/haverhill-mother-is-named-national-fellow\/","title":{"rendered":"Haverhill Mother is Named National Fellow"},"content":{"rendered":"

 <\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

Raquel Quezada, NECC Psychology student and 2022 Newman Fellow<\/p><\/div>\n

Based on her role as a leader and advocate for persons with disabilities, Raquel Quezada of Haverhill, a Liberal Arts: Psychology major<\/a> at Northern Essex Community College, has been selected as a Newman Civic Fellow by the Campus Compact<\/a>, a national coalition of colleges and universities committed to the public purposes of higher education.<\/p>\n

Originally from the Dominican Republic, Quezada is the mother of four children, including a 16-year old son with cerebral palsy. She has made it her mission to improve the lives of those living with disabilities.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs a mother of a son with disabilities, I have realized how some people in our society do not have equitable opportunities. People with disabilities and their families have to constantly struggle to access their rights,\u201d she says. \u201cI faithfully believe that the way to help the world become aware of inclusion, rights, and opportunities is to talk more about these issues in the media, written press, and digital platforms. This will create more awareness, empathy, patience, education, love, knowledge, and above all, inclusion.\u201d<\/p>\n

Quezada is president of the Changing the World of People with Disabilities Foundation and produces a television and radio show with the same name.<\/p>\n

She has written five books, one of which, \u201cBreaking the Barriers of Disability\u201d, shares the story of her son with suggestions for other parents with children with disabilities. \u201cMy intention is to inspire many to fight for their children and others in need,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n

In addition to her media work, Quezada advocates for special education rights at all levels of government from Haverhill City Hall to Capitol Hill. She is a member of the Massachusetts Developmental Disability Council, a member of the City of Haverhill Disability Commission, and a member of the Board of Disability Law Center.<\/p>\n

The Newman Civic Fellowship<\/a> recognizes and supports community-committed students who are change makers and public\u00a0problem-solvers at Campus Compact member institutions. Fellows are nominated by their president or chancellor on the basis of their potential for public leadership.<\/p>\n

Through the year-long fellowship, Campus Compact provides students with training and resources that nurture their assets and passions and help them develop\u00a0strategies\u00a0for social change. The yearlong program, named for Campus Compact founder\u00a0Frank Newman,\u00a0includes virtual learning opportunities and networking as part of a national network of engaged student leaders and an\u00a0optional in-person convening.<\/p>\n

In nominating Quezada for the fellowship, NECC President Lane Glenn wrote \u201cNorthern Essex faculty describe Raquel as proactive, empathetic, diligent, and engaged. She is a strong leader in the Merrimack Valley Latino community, assisting many families with navigating the school system and empowering them to advocate for their children\u2019s disability rights\u2026she is an excellent candidate for the Newman Civic Fellowship.\u201d<\/p>\n

Quezada plans to complete her associate degree in 2023.<\/p>\n

The 2022 group of Newman Fellows includes 173 students from 38 states and Mexico.<\/p>\n

Northern Essex Community College has campuses in both Haverhill and Lawrence. It offers\u00a0approximately\u00a060\u00a0associate degree and certificate programs\u00a0as well as hundreds of\u00a0noncredit courses\u00a0designed for personal enrichment and career growth.\u00a0 Each year,\u00a06,000\u00a0students are enrolled in credit associate degree and certificate programs on the Haverhill and Lawrence campuses; and\u00a0another 2,000\u00a0take noncredit workforce development and community education classes on campus, and at businesses and community sites across the Merrimack Valley.\u00a0 For more information, visit the website at\u00a0necc.edu\u00a0or call 978-556-3700.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Based on her role as a leader and advocate for persons with disabilities, Raquel Quezada of Haverhill, an NECC Liberal Arts: Psychology major, has been selected as a Newman Civic Fellow by the Campus Compact<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":27,"featured_media":25254,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[18,19,20],"tags":[203,381,461],"class_list":["post-23432","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-spotlight","category-stories","category-students","tag-dominican-diaspora","tag-liberal-arts","tag-newman-civic-fellow"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nHaverhill Mother is Named National Fellow - NECC News<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/2022\/03\/24\/haverhill-mother-is-named-national-fellow\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Haverhill Mother is Named National Fellow - NECC News\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Based on her role as a leader and advocate for persons with disabilities, Raquel Quezada of Haverhill, an NECC Liberal Arts: Psychology major, has been selected as a Newman Civic Fellow by the Campus Compact\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/2022\/03\/24\/haverhill-mother-is-named-national-fellow\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"NECC News\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2022-03-24T23:37:31+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-05-13T19:31:26+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2026\/02\/Raquel-Quezada-1.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"853\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1280\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Ernie Greenslade\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Ernie Greenslade\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/2022\/03\/24\/haverhill-mother-is-named-national-fellow\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/2022\/03\/24\/haverhill-mother-is-named-national-fellow\/\",\"name\":\"Haverhill Mother is Named National Fellow - NECC News\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/2022\/03\/24\/haverhill-mother-is-named-national-fellow\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/2022\/03\/24\/haverhill-mother-is-named-national-fellow\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2026\/02\/Raquel-Quezada-1.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2022-03-24T23:37:31+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-05-13T19:31:26+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/#\/schema\/person\/6a4640513b41a61d0435b6972d4577c9\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/2022\/03\/24\/haverhill-mother-is-named-national-fellow\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/2022\/03\/24\/haverhill-mother-is-named-national-fellow\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/2022\/03\/24\/haverhill-mother-is-named-national-fellow\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2026\/02\/Raquel-Quezada-1.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2026\/02\/Raquel-Quezada-1.jpg\",\"width\":853,\"height\":1280},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/2022\/03\/24\/haverhill-mother-is-named-national-fellow\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/home\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Haverhill Mother is Named National Fellow\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/\",\"name\":\"NECC News\",\"description\":\"\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/#\/schema\/person\/6a4640513b41a61d0435b6972d4577c9\",\"name\":\"Ernie Greenslade\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/75ae84652c63c20fe24eb5858c280eb011192a5104499880542d7f8dfd6ef2c9?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/75ae84652c63c20fe24eb5858c280eb011192a5104499880542d7f8dfd6ef2c9?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Ernie Greenslade\"},\"url\":\"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/author\/egreenslade\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Haverhill Mother is Named National Fellow - NECC News","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/2022\/03\/24\/haverhill-mother-is-named-national-fellow\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Haverhill Mother is Named National Fellow - NECC News","og_description":"Based on her role as a leader and advocate for persons with disabilities, Raquel Quezada of Haverhill, an NECC Liberal Arts: Psychology major, has been selected as a Newman Civic Fellow by the Campus Compact","og_url":"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/2022\/03\/24\/haverhill-mother-is-named-national-fellow\/","og_site_name":"NECC News","article_published_time":"2022-03-24T23:37:31+00:00","article_modified_time":"2026-05-13T19:31:26+00:00","og_image":[{"width":853,"height":1280,"url":"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2026\/02\/Raquel-Quezada-1.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Ernie Greenslade","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Ernie Greenslade","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/2022\/03\/24\/haverhill-mother-is-named-national-fellow\/","url":"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/2022\/03\/24\/haverhill-mother-is-named-national-fellow\/","name":"Haverhill Mother is Named National Fellow - NECC News","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/2022\/03\/24\/haverhill-mother-is-named-national-fellow\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/2022\/03\/24\/haverhill-mother-is-named-national-fellow\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2026\/02\/Raquel-Quezada-1.jpg","datePublished":"2022-03-24T23:37:31+00:00","dateModified":"2026-05-13T19:31:26+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/#\/schema\/person\/6a4640513b41a61d0435b6972d4577c9"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/2022\/03\/24\/haverhill-mother-is-named-national-fellow\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/2022\/03\/24\/haverhill-mother-is-named-national-fellow\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/2022\/03\/24\/haverhill-mother-is-named-national-fellow\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2026\/02\/Raquel-Quezada-1.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2026\/02\/Raquel-Quezada-1.jpg","width":853,"height":1280},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/2022\/03\/24\/haverhill-mother-is-named-national-fellow\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/home\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Haverhill Mother is Named National Fellow"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/#website","url":"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/","name":"NECC News","description":"","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/#\/schema\/person\/6a4640513b41a61d0435b6972d4577c9","name":"Ernie Greenslade","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/75ae84652c63c20fe24eb5858c280eb011192a5104499880542d7f8dfd6ef2c9?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/75ae84652c63c20fe24eb5858c280eb011192a5104499880542d7f8dfd6ef2c9?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Ernie Greenslade"},"url":"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/author\/egreenslade\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23432","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/27"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=23432"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23432\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":33154,"href":"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23432\/revisions\/33154"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/25254"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=23432"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=23432"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=23432"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}