Gabriela Quintanilla

Gabriela Quintanilla was born in El Salvador and migrated to the United States at the age of thirteen. When she arrived to this country she faced the harsh reality of being undocumented. Despite many challenges Gabriela preserved and graduated from Stony Brook University in 2016 with a Bachelor of Arts in Sociology and a minor in Political Science.

While in college, Gabriela became involved as a social justice activist and community organizer with the Coalition of Immokalee Workers. During her final year at university she realized she needed to do more to help the rural undocumented student population in NY State and founded Adelante Student Voices (Adelante) in 2015. Gabriela mobilizes rallies for undocumented and farmworker rights, designs workshops to amplify the voices of marginalized students, and coordinates fundraising efforts across NY State. She is featured in two award-winning documentaries, Dreamers Among Us and Paper State: Undocumented Unafraid Undeterred, which won Best Student Documentary at the 2013 Cannes Film Festival.

Gabriela served as the Coordinator for Western NY for Rural & Migrant Ministry for four years, overseeing the regional office in the Finger Lakes, NY. She mobilized farmworker women, youth, allies and staff to work together to advance policy change in rural communitie