Diana Cervantes Ph.D. is a recent graduate of the Program for Higher Education Leadership and Policy (PHELP) at The University of Texas at Austin where she conducted research for the Free College Equity Lab, the Center for Community College Student Engagement (CCCSE), and Project MALES. Her dissertation research centered Latina/Latino/Hispanic community college students and their racialized experiences with free college policy design and implementation. She received two national awards for the 2024 Outstanding Doctoral Student from the Council for the Study of Community Colleges (CSCC) and the American Association of Hispanics in Higher Education (AAHHE). Diana earned Bachelor’s degrees from the University of Oregon and a Master of Arts in higher and postsecondary education with an emphasis in social/cultural and civic analysis from Teachers College, Columbia University.