Personal Biography:

Paul Hernandez brings over twenty years of experience working and volunteering in the community around social justice issues.

Before joining the MAAC Project as the Director of Community Development/ Community Technology, Paul worked in a variety of academic settings. For the past ten years he has worked as a professor, teacher, and mentor at Harvard University, the University of California at Santa Cruz and at California State University at Monterey Bay. There he taught a variety of courses, all touching in some way on issues of social equality and social justice. At Cal State Monterey Bay Paul helped the Queretaro Research Project pioneer technology tools for the use in basic anthropological research.

Through his work in the city of Watsonville (originally, the city was his field study site) Paul was able to bring innovative programs and technologies together to serve the rural poor. In the mid to late 90s, working out of a converted city jail, Paul successfully built the Enterprise Community Technology Center into a thriving hub where community members and technology created new possibilities to address issues of social injustice and the digital divide. Paul also created, working closely with the youth of Watsonville, the YCREW (Youth Computer Resources en Watsonville). Originally intended to build web sites for non-profit agencies, the YCREW has now added the entire City of Watsonville web site to its portfolio. For this work, and for his work with at-risk youth in the community, Paul received a congressional commendation from the office of Congressperson Sam Farr.

As Director of Community Development/ Community Technology at MAAC Project, Paul is responsible for all of the technology initiatives being undertaken in the communities that MAAC serves. Computer Technology Centers, course and curriculum development, digital video production --- just to name a few. In addition Paul is currently working on one of the most ambitious technology projects ever undertaken by a non-profit of MAAC’s size --- a wireless broadband grid, providing access to the poorest region of the City of San Diego, Barrio Logan. The CHISPA Project’s (Community/ Household ISP Alliance) broadly stated goal is to make technology an effective tool of empowerment for the residents who live there. The CHISPA is dedicated to overcoming the three largest obstacles to technology use in these underserved areas: accessibility (internet access), affordability (computer purchasing programs), and applicability (community based web portals).

Paul Hernandez holds a B.A. from the University of California at Santa Barbara and is currently finishing a Ph.D. in Social Anthropology at Harvard University.