When Teresa Garcia moved to Washington state from Arizona, she expected to have a tough time navigating the bureaucracy of a new school district—especially since her children needed specialized services and she was still trying to master English.

But she quickly found a powerful and reassuring ally within the Federal Way school district near Seattle: Trise Moore, who leads the district’s family- and community-engagement efforts.

Moore helped Garcia ensure her daughter got the speech therapy she needed. And she gave Garcia suggestions on how to entertain her children—who had loved to play outside in sunny, dry Arizona—in this rainy corner of Washington state, connecting her to the library and programs at the community center.

Best of all, Moore helped Garcia understand how to become an advocate for her children, and eventually, others’ too.

The past two years I’ve shot two short films for Education Week for its Leaders to Learn From and Parent Changemakers award.

Link to Teresa’s story.

Link to Trise’s story.