Deborah Marie Rodríguez García is Education Manager of Humanitarian Programs at Sesame Workshop. She supports multimedia and print material creation, early childhood curriculum development, and play-based program design for a variety of programs, including Play to Learn. Made possible with the support of the LEGO Foundation, Play to Learn is an innovative humanitarian program from Sesame Workshop, BRAC, and the International Rescue Committee that harnesses the power of play to deliver critical early learning to children and caregivers affected by the Rohingya and Syrian refugee crises. Most recently, Deborah led the launch of Sesame Workshop International Social Impact’s COVID-19 Response Effort, including the creation of the framework guiding the department’s coronavirus-directed projects. Currently, she is the education lead for a USAID-funded project in support of the Government of Pakistan’s Teleschool channel and is providing educational support to Teaching Smarter: Teacher Development for Sustainable Recovery During COVID, a teacher professional development program in Nigeria.

Prior to working with Sesame Workshop, Deborah supported national curriculum development initiatives; managed public health education and language learning programs; and led capacity building opportunities for educators across the globe, including in Malawi, Nicaragua, Bolivia, India, South Africa, Ethiopia, Honduras and the United States of America. She has consultancy experience working with Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ), the U.S. Department of State’s English Language Programs, and the USAID-Funded Foundation for the Autonomy and the Development of the Atlantic Coast of Nicaragua’s EduExito. Deborah proudly served as a Peace Corps education specialist on the Caribbean coast of Nicaragua.

Deborah holds a MSc in International Development from the University of Edinburgh School of Social and Political Science and a MA in Modern Languages with a focus on teaching from Georgia Southern University.